British Airways has reaffirmed its commitment to supporting sustainable green energy by signing up to an initiative called Leaders of Sustainable Biofuels.
The group aims to support and champion the development of second generation biofuel in Europe.
So-called first generation biofuels are generally produced by growing crops such as corn, wheat, soya or palm oil. However, when grown these can displace food crops leading to higher food prices and the potential for deforestation as more land is needed to grow the crops.
Second generation biofuels, such as waste and algae initiatives, have a lower environmental impact and do not compete with food production.
British Airways is the only airline to join the Leaders for Sustainable Biofuels. Other signatories include chemical company Clariant and Denmark’s Dong Energy.
“It is important to support the development of second generation, sustainable biofuels are they have the potential to significantly reduce carbon emissions of the aviation sector,” said BA’s head of Environment Jonathon Counsell.
“We are paving the way with our first-of-a-kind project in conjunction with Solena Fuels to produce sustainable aviation fuel in commercial quantities from waste.”
IAG has also produced a breakdown for figures for British Airways and Iberia