Divert Inc. Turlock facility can process 100,000 tons of unsold food into renewable natural gas for PG&E system.
November 26, 2024
Divert Inc., an impact technology company, and Pacific Gas & Electric Co. (PG&E) announced a first-of-its-kind interconnection in the state of California to address the wasted food crisis. Divert’s facility in Turlock, Calif., is now processing unsold food products into carbon-negative renewable energy, which is being injected into PG&E’s natural gas transmission line.
The Turlock Integrated Diversion & Energy Facility will be able to process 100,000 tons of unsold food products a year. Nearly 225,000 MMBtu of renewable natural gas will be delivered into the PG&E system. Divert’s facility will also mitigate approximately 23,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually, equivalent to removing approximately 5,000 gas-powered cars from the road.
“This is a remarkable clean energy milestone that reflects the hard work, dedication and world-class talent of every individual who has contributed to bringing this project to life,” said Ryan Begin, chief executive officer and co-founder of Divert. “Together with PG&E, we are providing carbon-negative renewable energy to Californians, bringing the state one step closer to achieving its climate and clean energy goals. The Turlock facility represents a significant step forward in addressing the dual environmental and social crises of wasted food and underscores Divert’s leadership in scaling sustainable infrastructure solutions for the energy sector.”
More than 63 million tons of food are wasted in the U.S. each year – a crisis that contributes significantly to greenhouse gas emissions, at nearly 14%, according to the news release. California alone discards 6 million tons of food annually.
The Turlock facility delivers on Divert’s commitment to further address the wasted food crisis in California, providing businesses with data analytics and insights to waste less and donate more food, the news release reported. Leveraging its proprietary anaerobic digestion solution, Divert is then taking unsold food that would otherwise emit harmful methane in a landfill and transforming it into a beneficial, carbon-negative byproduct with the goal of bringing California closer to reaching its net-zero carbon pollution goals.
“Today marks another exciting first for PG&E and our customers and highlights our commitment to supporting the advancement of diverse renewable natural gas resources produced locally in California,” said Austin Hastings, vice president of PG&E Gas Engineering. “By accepting renewable natural gas made from unsold food products into our pipeline system, we’re contributing to a more sustainable California and advancing toward our goal of a net-zero energy system by 2040. It’s a win for our customers, our state and our climate goals.”
Divert’s facility in Turlock is slated to be fully operational in the fourth quarter of 2024, with a grand opening event scheduled on Dec. 4.
Founded in 2007, Divert is an impact technology company on a mission to Protect the Value of Food. The company creates advanced technologies and sustainable infrastructure to address wasted food, provides an end-to-end solution that leverages data to prevent waste, facilitates edible food recovery to serve communities in need and converts unsold food products into renewable energy. Through this integrated approach to reducing wasted food, Divert works with more than 7,200 customer locations across the U.S. to reduce wasted food.
Pacific Gas & Electric Co., a subsidiary of PG&E Corp., is a combined natural gas and electric utility serving more than 16 million people across 70,000 square miles in northern and central California.
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