J-STORIES - As global demand for renewable energy grows, a Japanese distiller is generating electricity from sweet potatoes to promote “local production for local consumption” of energy.
The fuel used to generate the electricity is biogas, which is extracted during the methane fermentation of lees and potato scraps from the making of shochu, a Japanese distilled spirit. As well as returning to the shochu production process as fuel, the gas is converted to electricity to power company-owned electric vehicles (EVs).
The total amount of shochu lees produced during production at all the company’s plants is around 850 tons per day and can be as much as 1,200 tons. Meanwhile, 15 tons of potato waste a day is generated from the process to select the best quality potatoes.
After the biogas is extracted, the remaining material is separated into solids and liquids. The solids are used to make compost, and the liquids are purified before getting released back into the natural environment.
The company generating electricity from shochu production is Kirishima Shuzo, based in the city of Miyakonojo, Miyazaki prefecture. It plans to replace not only four company vehicles currently powered by bioelectricity, but also all its approximately 130 company vehicles with EVs by the 2030 financial year.
“We turn sweet potatoes into energy, and we make shochu from sweet potatoes,” said Takuzo Enatsu, the company’s Executive Director in a media interview. “We don’t waste any of the energy created in this process.”
The amount of electricity generated by the company each year from sweet potatoes is 8.5 million kWh, equivalent to the annual electricity consumption of around 2400 households. As of fiscal 2020, the company has achieved a 33% reduction in CO2 emissions compared to 2013. The goal is to achieve zero CO2 emissions from its factories and offices by 2030.
Translation and Editing by Tony McNicol
Top page photo by Vell/Envato
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