Bioethanol

If ethanol – also called ethyl alcohol or simply alcohol – is produced through the fermentation of biomass, it is called bioethanol. In 2019, the total bioethanol production volume of the EU member states was around 56,000,000 m³. The largest proportion – around 82 per cent – is used as an admixture to gasoline. The most widespread product is E10 – fuel with ten percent bioethanol admixture.

Bioethanol is also used as a solvent in medicine and the pharmaceutical industry. Bioethanol is also used as a raw material for disinfectants. Many household products also contain bioethanol, mainly because of its antibacterial properties. This is what makes organically produced alcohol so important in the manufacture of cleaning agents and in the cosmetics industrym.

GEP SE produces 10,000 m³ of bioethanol annually from baking waste and other residues. In further production, disinfectants, cleaning agents and detergents are refined from them – all in-house and completely climate-neutral.