Blue Ridge Biofuels

A few years ago, in a little shed tucked away on a farm near the Blue Ridge Mountains, a small group of people started to work on some very big things. Their operation was simple but their vision was far-reaching. They’d visit local restaurants to gather waste vegetable oil and then process it into biodiesel with a reactor, which was little more than a modified 55-gallon drum. Biodiesel, made from plant oils and animal fats, is a clean-burning, biodegradable, alternative fuel. It can be used in a variety of applications, from heating a home to powering a car.

“(The reactor) wasn’t exactly the safest thing in the world, but it did the job,” says Mac Minaudo, distribution manager at Blue Ridge Biofuels, who was involved from the beginning.

Founded at the end of 2004 as a biodiesel cooperative, Blue Ridge Biofuels became a limited liability company in 2005. Today the 10 staff members of the employee-owned business produce and distribute biodiesel in Asheville and the surrounding area. The mountain communities of North Carolina have always experienced higher than average unemployment rates. This small business is a good example of how alternative energy businesses can provide “green collar” jobs, build wealth, and strength the local economy. 

“We’re definitely locally-based and we want to stay that way,” says Melita Kyriakou, office manager.

The team collects waste fryer oil from over 100 restaurants across Western North Carolina. “Not only is it sustainable biodiesel,” Melita says. “But now we’re keeping valuable resources in the local economy.” 

Mac Minaudo first heard of Self-Help when he worked at the Laughing Seed Café, which is located in a Self-Help owned building on Wall Street in Asheville.  He remembered the name when the company needed a $25,000 microloan for their first fuel truck and other supplies.  

As a start-up company in an emerging industry, Blue Ridge couldn’t qualify for a loan from a conventional lender. The business did not have significant assets or collateral for a  loan, and the owners themselves were relatively young and didn’t have a lot of personal assets.

“Biodiesel was this cool new thing that was untested in the market,” says Tracy Ward, a Self-Help commercial loan officer. “There weren’t a lot of other biodiesel companies around to show it could be successful.”

Tracy was a big champion of Blue Ridge Biofuels from the start, Melita says. “I talk to Tracy once a week, and she offers a lot of good advice.”

As Blue Ridge Biofuels demonstrated skillful management and profitability, the group sought additional funds for further expansion. By this time, the business had become an LLC and developed a written agreement that outlined who did what, how net profits were to be divided, and how business decisions were made, which gave Tracy even more confidence. They had also recently won a grant from the State Energy Office. In December 2006, Self-Help made a $153,820 loan to Blue Ridge that could be paid back as they received periodic grant installments.

“I’ve been very impressed with all of them,” Tracy says. “Especially the way they made running a business by committee really work.”  With little interest in formal structure and bureaucracy, the Blue Ridge Biofuels team uses their co-op roots to their advantage. “They’ve done a good job of letting everyone step forward and do the thing they’re best at,” Tracy says.

Blue Ridge currently supplies biodiesel to six publicly accessible biodiesel pumps in the greater Asheville region. They also deliver off-road biodiesel in bulk and provide BioHeat as an alternative to traditional heating oil.  The company is once again on the verge of a massive renovation. The overhaul of their facility will enable the team to produce everything they sell themselves, rather than relying on outside suppliers. With all of their biodiesel made in-house, Blue Ridge will be confident that everything they distribute meets the highest standard of sustainability.