Louis Dreyfus Company LLC announced Sept. 28 the official inauguration of the new glycerin refinery at its subsidiary’s soybean crushing and biodiesel plant in Claypool, Indiana. The opening ceremony was attended by local officials and industry representatives. The refinery is the second largest in the U.S. producing USP-grade kosher refined glycerin, with a capacity of 80 million pounds per year.

Louis Dreyfus Company has been marketing crude glycerin, a coproduct of the biodiesel process at Claypool, since the facility began operations in 2007. The addition of the new refinery allows the plant to process up to 100 percent of its crude glycerin production into kosher- and halal-certified USP food-grade glycerin, with a minimum 99.7 percent purity.

“Our plant produces the highest-quality refined glycerin, meeting the increasing needs of our growing customer network and a glycerin market that is on the rise, as new applications for refined glycerin continue to be discovered across a variety of industries worldwide including personal care, pharmaceuticals, food manufacturing, healthcare, automotive, chemical and textiles,” said Sean Doyle, regional head of oilseeds for North America at Louis Dreyfus Company.

Located approximately 100 miles southeast of Chicago, the Claypool facility is on the Norfolk Southern Rail Road and has the capability to load refined glycerin into trucks as well as tanker railcars. Louis Dreyfus Company has also leased specialized, lined tank cars to ship refined glycerin to customers, and built additional onsite storage capacity to support refinery operations.

“The refinery will help set the stage for further growth and employment in agricultural processing for Kosciusko County,” continued Doyle. “We are excited about the benefits it will bring to the County and neighboring communities.”