Food waste disposal: is it possible to save or gain?
Are you looking for ways to significantly reduce the cost of disposing of food production residues?
Are you looking for new management options that are more profitable and more sustainable?
With the Circular Economy today this is possible.
In fact, food residues, usually identified by the EWC codes 02.03.04 and 02.06.01, identified as “Waste unusable for consumption or processing,” can have different destinations such as biomass for clean energy production and as feedstock for livestock or pet food.
What is food waste
According to the updates brought by the Circular Economy Directive 2018/851/EU, a new point has been introduced to the definition of food waste.
Taking the referenced legislation, we identify as food waste.
“all food (or food products or foodstuffs), or any processed, partially processed or unprocessed substance or product intended to be ingested, or reasonably expected to be ingested, by human beings, which has become waste.”
These scraps, following the regulations, can be divided into three major groups:
- By-products of plant origin.
- By-products of animal origin.
- Ex-food by-products.
Regulatory framework food waste
The reference directive for the regulatory framework of food waste is Directive 2008/98/EC, which establishes a common European legal framework for the management and treatment of waste.
The objective of this standard is to protect the environment and human health by emphasizing the importance of appropriate waste management, reuse and recycling techniques designed to reduce pressures on resources and improve utilization.
Regulation of plant by-products and ex-food products
As for plant and animal by-products, the nature of which is regulated through Article 184-bis found in Legislative Decree 152/06, they are defined as
“residues that can be used as raw material in the same chain or in a production chain even different from the one from which the by-product originated.”
In addition, ABPs find an interesting use not only in biogas but also in pet food, the regulation of which follows Regulation 1069/2009.
Finally, former food products, as defined by EU REG. 68/2013 as amended (Part A, general provisions) are:
“foodstuffs, other than catering waste, which have been manufactured, in full compliance with EU food law, for human consumption but which are no longer intended for human consumption for practical, logistical reasons or reasons related to processing, packaging or other defects, without posing any risk to health when used as feed.“
Do you want to give value to your food scraps?
With Sfridoo®, you capture the residual value of your animal or vegetable waste, reaping economic, fiscal and environmental benefits, thanks to the principles of the Circular Economy and collaboration with other companies in the network.
ENHANCES YOUR WASTEWhat are food residues: examples and sectors
Food waste can be of different kinds depending on the type of product that results from the company’s production process and can be listed as follows:
- Fruit and vegetable processing products (peels; pulp; cuttings).
- Confectionery products (snacks; snack cakes/sweets; ice cream; chocolate; cookies; cream fillings; candy, etc.).
- Bakery products (bread; piadinas; breadsticks; crackers; galettes; pizza etc.).
- Powdered products (flavorings; appetizers; supplements, etc.).
- Pasta food products (dry pasta; wet dough; filled pasta; egg pasta; rice; cous cous etc.).
- Animal products (dairy products; egg products; fish products; pork; beef; poultry meat etc.).
In addition, they can come from different sectors such as fruit and vegetables, bakery and confectionery, dairy, meat, pasta food, bakery, seafood, egg products, soft drinks, and food additives and flavorings.
How and why these wastes are created
Food waste from companies may be created during the production process as a natural consequence of processing a material (e.g., part of the raw dough for making pasta).
However, it can also often be generated for other reasons including:
- Non-conformity with company quality standards in which fall those food products that do not conform to the requirements of internal quality standards for the purpose of marketing the product.
- Production planning errors in which fall those food products that are simply categorized as unsold but have the exact same characteristics as the finished product.
- TMC (Minimum Conservation Term) exceeded in which are included all those products that have exceeded the minimum conversation term so that they can no longer be sold through normal sales channels but, not presenting any risk to human health, can be reused.
- Returns from large-scale retail trade, due to non-compliance of orders or specific agreements between the supplier and the GDO (such as in the case of holiday products).
How is food waste valued?
Companies in the agrifood supply chain have several opportunities available for circular management of their production residues that represent concrete alternatives to management as waste both in terms of lowering disposal costs and reducing environmental impact.
The most frequent valorization destinations are:
- biogas plants;
- animal feed (farm animals);
- pet food (dogs, cats, fish, birds, etc.).
We would like to mention that these are not the only destinations.
In fact, this type of waste can be used in the cosmetics, pharmaceutical, construction and beverage sectors.
Those we have listed are the most frequent destinations we have explored with the Sfridoo team within the case studies we will tell you about in the next paragraphs.
Do you want to give value to your food scraps?
With Sfridoo®, you capture the residual value of your animal or vegetable waste, reaping economic, fiscal and environmental benefits, thanks to the principles of the Circular Economy and collaboration with other companies in the network.
ENHANCES YOUR WASTECase studies of success in the food supply chain: here are two solutions
Here are reported real case studies of companies that through the application of Industrial Symbiosis and Circular Economy models have achieved important benefits both economically, by reducing operating costs, and environmentally, by minimizing the impact of their waste.
We will list two main solutions: valorization through biogas plants and through animal feed.
Case study: from organic waste to matrix for energy production in biogas plants
One of the most important companies in the food sector on the Italian territory, specializing in the production of cous cous, which falls into the macrocategory of food pasta products, has managed to take advantage of the opportunities offered by the circular economy and exploit its production waste as a feed matrix for biogas plants.
Cous cous production waste is generated for two main reasons as listed below:
- Size of cous cous grains that through screening systems are found not to meet quality standards (e.g., too small or too large).
- Spillage of the residue on the floor during production activities, collected as a result of cleaning activities.
- Finished packaged products that are no longer marketable due to damaged packaging or contamination.
Benefits obtained
In fact, the valorization activity allowed the company to transform the residue, previously managed as waste and therefore disposed of with high management costs, into a resource to be used for energy recovery.
Through the identification of the most appropriate partner and the correct regulatory framing of the residue as a by-product, the company has managed not only to lower its disposal costs and recover a valuable residue, but also to receive a profit from its disposal.
The company incurs an overall cost for waste management of about 50,000€ per year, achieving, through the valorization activity, an economic gain of 18,000€.
Case study: from organic waste to biogas plant and feed material
A major company in the food sector, falling into the macrocategory of food pasta products, and specializing in the production of dry egg pasta and fresh stuffed pasta, has approached the circular economy by managing to valorize its production waste by directing it toward a dual channel: energy production and the production of feed for livestock.
Waste from pasta production is generated from non-compliance with company quality standards and as waste endemic to production activity for the following reasons:
- Raw dough resulting from the dough-forming activity.
- Aesthetic defects of the raw dough that do not conform to the company’s quality standards of the finished product.
- Falling residue on the floor during production activity, collected due to cleaning activities.
- Aesthetic defects of dry or fresh dough not conforming to company quality standards for finished products.
- Finished packaged products are no longer marketable due to packaging damage or contamination.
Benefits obtained
The company has thus managed to shift from managing waste as waste, with high management costs, to managing it as a by-product and ex-food product destined for energy recovery and animal feed.
The company, through the implementation of a circular management model for its waste, has succeeded in lowering its waste management costs to the point of achieving high revenue from the sale of both wet and dry pulp residue.
Advantages for companies in valorizing their agri-food waste
Initiating processes to valorize production waste confers several advantages on companies:
- optimization of production process management;
- reduced costs associated with waste disposal;
- increased earnings from the sale of residues;
- reduction of the environmental impact of its activities;
- creation of new strategic partnerships;
- elimination of organic waste from annual accounting.
Your company, too, can gain the benefits listed by relying on the right partner to bring the Circular Economy in-house.
Do you want to give value to your food scraps?
With Sfridoo®, you capture the residual value of your animal or vegetable waste, reaping economic, fiscal and environmental benefits, thanks to the principles of the Circular Economy and collaboration with other companies in the network.
ENHANCES YOUR WASTE
Roberta Scassa
Circular Economy Expert & Matcher
The circular economy is a regenerative system that allows what would otherwise be discarded to be given new life. Sharing its principles is the first step toward creating value
