Fuel

At its recent Hollywood Premiere, the film "Fuel" brought the audience to its feet in the longest standing ovation of all its many ovations that it received at every film festival - including each of the 10 screenings at Sundance Film Festival.

This film shows the world what a small percentage of us have known for several years now: Biodiesel is available, works in any diesel vehicle, is made in America, and is better for the environment than petroleum fuels. It does not stop with biodiesel but instead, presents many sustainable energy solutions available right now for individual and planetary health, security and economic prosperity.

"Fuel" goes from Josh Tickell's time on a farm in Germany where he learned that diesel fuel can be made from vegetable and animal products, to his journey across America in the Veggie Van, to the widespread production of biodiesel from used fryer oil, to the present where new biodiesel is being made from algae and new food stocks and is available from ordinary pumps at filling stations.

The film answers the question on everyone's mind these days: Is biodiesel going to make food expensive and starve the poor? The answer is no. Biodiesel is made from oils, while the solids from the feed stock go on to be food for people and animals. The film does not suggest that biodiesel will supply all our food and energy needs. We learn the value of wind, solar, geothermal, and other clean, domestic energy sources in filling the missing pieces of the puzzle that will free us from our dependence on oil.