Dear Editor,
On page 20 of Render magazine April 2004 issue, there is a table called “Incoming Raw Material Handled by California Rendering and Grease Processing Plants.” Within the table, we have noticed the therms of natural gas used in the rendering process value of fiscal year (FY) 02/03 drops to 1,294,163 from FY 01/02 value of 21,111,243.
We would like to know what is the cause of this drastic reduction of natural gas used by the rendering process. If it is substituted by some other form of energy, what would that be? There is no reference stated in the article where those numbers are originally from. We appreciate if you could give us the source of these values as well as the reason for the drastic reduction of natural gas used.
Thank you for your assistance.
Chisato Nakade
East Bay Municipal Utility District
Oakland, CA
First, Render published the FY 02/03 “therms used” figure incorrectly; the correct number of therms used should have been published as 1,294,163,139, which means a drastic increase of therms used. We apologize for this error.
Second, after checking with the certified public accountant (CPA) who actually compiled the report regarding this dramatic increase, it was determined that one company reported their therm use incorrectly from previous years. The actual number of therms used in FY 02/03 is, therefore, not available, but is possibly about the same or slightly higher than in the two previous fiscal years because renderers used very little, if any, rendered products as boiler fuel due to lower natural gas prices and higher prices for rendered products.
The statistics for the annual report are provided on a confidential and voluntary basis to a private CPA who compiles the report for the Pacific Coast Renderers Association.
Render welcomes your opinions. Please send correspondence to: Editor, Render Magazine, 2820 Birch Avenue, Camino, CA 95709. Letters can also be sent via e-mail to editors@rendermagazine.com, or by fax to (530) 644-8429. Render reserves the right to edit letters for length, content, and clarity.
June 2004 Render