Used Cooking Oil From China Flooding Market, US Biofuel Industry Wants Tariff Hike

As tensions simmer between the US and China, a new front has opened up: used cooking oil. You read that right, used cooking oil. The American biofuel industry is urging the government to raise tariffs on imports of this greasy good from China.

Here’s the deal: according to the National Oilseed Processors Association (NOPA), a bunch of big US companies that crush soybeans for things like biodiesel, are worried about a flood of cheap used cooking oil coming in from China. They say this influx is hurting demand for US-grown crops used to make renewable fuels.

There’s another wrinkle to this story. There are whispers (though nothing confirmed) that this Chinese used oil might not be entirely on the up and up. Some folks suspect it’s being mixed with fresh vegetable oil, which could mess with market prices and potentially undermine US biofuel regulations.

So what’s next? Well, with President Biden already prepping a new wave of tariffs on China, the soybean crushers are hoping to get used cooking oil on that list, and with a higher tax rate than the current 15.5%.

This is a weird one, but it highlights the complex world of international trade. Used cooking oil might not be glamorous, but it can have a big impact on American farms and fuel production. We’ll have to see if the US government decides to crank up the heat on China with this unexpected tariff target.

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