04.07.08 Charles rides on wine and cheese
An Aston Martin running on biofuel made from wine and cheese waste is the latest addition to Prince Charles’ environmentally friendly car collection.
The luxury car given to Charles by Queen Elizabeth on his 21 st birthday was converted to run on 100% bioethanol, supplied by Green Fuels Limited.
The company, which already provides biodiesel for the Royal Train, produced the fuel from 8,000 litres of surplus wine bought for 1p a litre.
They then added alcohol from fermented whey collected from local cheesemakers and sold the ethanol to the prince for £1.10 a litre.
“We’re very keen to ensure that the highest levels of sustainability are achieved by using only waste materials to produce the bioethanol”, said Green Fuels Ltd director Colin Hygate.
“We decided to use wine and cheese because they were the first waste products that became available to us. But basically, the car can run on fuel made from any organic sources.”
A press officer for Buckingham Palace said: “The wine is sourced from a winery in Wiltshire, close to Prince Charles’ Highgrove estate.
“With the ethanol supplied by Green Fuels, the Aston Martin can be run the whole summer.”
The prince has also converted his other cars – several Jaguars, an Audi and a Range Rover – to run on 100% biodiesel made from used cooking oil.