IANS

London, Nov 24 (mb):  Two British environmentalists have started an adventurous journey to Timbuktu in a lorry powered by bio-fuel made from renewable resources, including recycled chocolate.

After starting their journey Friday, engineer Andy Pag and electrician John Grimshaw will drive their Ford lorry through France and Spain. Then they plan to drive across the Sahara, aiming to reach the remote city of Timbuktu, in the west African state of Mali, as their final destination.

They are taking 2,000 litres of bio-diesel made from 4,000 kg of chocolate misshapes, the equivalent of 80,000 chocolate bars, to fuel their adventure.

However, they will not be able to dip into their tank if they feel peckish as the bio-diesel does not look or smell like chocolate. The fuel is made from cocoa butter extracted from the waste chocolate, which is melted before being mixed with methanol and caustic soda.

Both men are keen environmentalists and want to raise awareness of the benefits of bio-diesel, which produces lower carbon emissions than fossil fuels and is made from renewable resources.

Their carbon-neutral trip won the support of Ecotec, a British firm, which makes fuel from renewable resources, and specializes in recycling chocolate rejects into green fuel.

"Timbuktu is a city which is being eaten away by the encroaching desert. It's at the sharp end of climate change," the pair said.

"If we can make it there with bio-fuel there's no reason why motorists can't use it on the school run or on their commute to work," they added.

The two men are to take a small processing unit with them on the trip, expected to take three weeks, to convert waste oil products into fuel.