Entitled “Driving Green Growth”, the report predicts that the capacity for food waste to be treated using AD will have grown tenfold from its level in 2010 by 2020.

It also states that anaerobic digestion (AD) facilities will be key to reduce waste sent to landfills.

Another viable alternative for organic wastes is to be incinerated in energy-from-waste facilities. According to SITA’s report Energy-from-waste has the potential to meet 15% of the UK’s electricity from renewable sources commitment and a third of the country’s residential gas demand (up to 12% of total UK demand) could be met by the waste management sector.

But AD still is the most “eco-friendly solution” of them all. The process is CO2 free and the compost is reused as fertilizer which in turn fits with the concept of a circular economy emphasised on SITA’s report.

Using the “circular economy principle”, where waste is treated as a secondary resource and recycled and recovered materials are returned to the general economy, the report estimates that the UK waste management sector could:

• Provide opportunities for up to £25 billion of investment in new infrastructure, including new waste treatment facilities;
• Create up to 84,000 new jobs by 2020, directly and indirectly with a higher level of skills required than ever before;
• Triple waste derived renewable electricity (from thermal combustion alone) to 3.6 terawatt hours (TWh) powering one million homes;
• Energy-from-waste has the potential to meet 15% of the UK’s electricity from renewable sources commitment and a third of the country’s residential gas demand (up to 12% of total UK demand) could be met by the waste management sector;
• Bring tens of millions of tonnes of valuable secondary commodities, reducing virgin material imports, helping UK manufacturing and supporting the circular economy. [E.g. 4.2 million tonnes of card were exported in 2010 and 7.7 million tonnes of paper were imported].

We end this article with the report’s foreword from SITA UK CEO David Palmer Jones:

“The potential for the waste management industry to help the UK meet some of its most challenging goals – on jobs, on growth, on green energy – is substantial, but often overlooked. The industry has track record, even in challenging economic times, that supports claims that it can deliver on all these fronts over the next decade and beyond.”

The subject was brought to attention by Channel 4 news that asked the four biggest supermarkets in Britain for their food waste data and only disclosed the information.

In fact Sainsbury’s has always been open about its waste figures in general, including its organic waste. The supermarket giant not only shows its figures publicly but also tells us exactly what it does with it.

Last year Sainsbury’s revealed the details of its “20 by 20” sustainability plan an ambitious plan to send zero waste to landfill, reduce its packaging by half and its carbon emissions by 30 per cent in absolute of 2005 levels by 2020. (More on that in future article)

Tesco, Asda and Morrison’s declined to disclose their individual figures when contacted by Channel 4 news. The first two refused to even explain why they won’t release such data, while Morrison’s gave a plausible but not convincing excuse that the information is “commercially sensitive”.

Meanwhile Sainsbury’s told the news channel that it generated about 44,000 tonnes of food waste in 2011, emphasising that none ended in landfill with edible food going to charity, while the rest went to animal organisations or for processing through anaerobic digestion.

According to food waste author and campaigner Tristram Stuart, by forcing the big four to show their food waste figures publicly it will create more transparency in the system and “a competition between supermarkets to appear the least wasteful”.

Supermarkets are already obliged to provide their waste figures to WRAP and according to the British Retail Consortium’s environmental policy advisor Bob Gordon supermarkets were “sceptical” about how the figures might be used if disclosed publicly.

If you are doing everything by the books why hide it?

Tesco, Asda and Morisson’s are constantly boasting about their green credentials. Food waste management is a very important sustainability indicator, so why not reveal it.

We would like to hear you opinion now. Why do you think supermarkets are hiding such figures?

To achieve that the LOCOG (London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games) which was the first Games Organising Committee to be certified to the  British Standard 8901: Specification for a Sustainability Management Systems for Events, developed the London 2012 Sustainability Plan: Towards a One Planet 2012 and to ensure all promises are kept an independent body, the Commission for a Sustainable London 2012, has been set up to monitor us and report back to the public.

The Sustainability Plan focuses on five key themes:

1. Climate change: minimising greenhouse gas emissions and ensuring legacy facilities are able to cope with the impacts of climate change.

2. Waste: minimising waste at every stage of the project, ensuring no waste is sent to landfill during Games-time, and encouraging the development of new waste processing infrastructure in East London.

3. Biodiversity: minimising the impact of the Games on wildlife and their habitats in and around Games venues, leaving a legacy of enhanced habitats where we can, e.g. the Olympic Park.

4. Inclusion: Promoting access for all and celebrating the diversity of London and the UK, creating new employment, training and business opportunities.

5. Healthy living: Inspiring people across the country to take up sport and develop active, healthy and sustainable lifestyles.

According to LOCOG’s corporate sustainability manager Phil Cumming, there will be three main waste streams to be collected during the Olympic Games: compostables, dry recycling and residual waste.

What interests us is compostables, in other words, food waste. According to WRAP’s predictions 40% of the catering waste expected to arise at the games will be food and all this waste will be recycled through composting.

Another important factor will be the use of compostable packaging. Mr Cumming said that compostable packaging will be used on a scale never seen before in the UK.

In an interview to letsrecycle.com corporate sustainability manager said:

“We have come up with an approach which has not been attempted at this scale. It might not work but we are setting out what we want to do and people will learn from that in the future. Pursuing compostables is potentially controversial but there is a growing concession that it has to be in place. Given that it comes higher than energy recovery in the waste hierarchy it has to play a role.”

The official Olympic Games waste contractor is SITA UK; the company will be responsible for all the compostables and residual waste streams. While Coca Cola has comprised itself for dealing with all the dry recyclables which will be mainly PET bottles provided by the soft drinks giant and official sponsor of the Games.

Despite the fact that many subcontractors have not been appointed yet, SITA’s director Marek Gordon is very optimistic and he expects that the 70% recycling mark will be surpassed.

For further information we recommend you read Sustainability Guidelines for Events.

Entitled “Anaerobic Digestion Infrastructure in the UK”, this report will enable the government to better understand the UK’s AD industry and how to manage and encourage its growth. It will also establish a comprehensive and authoritative baseline against which to measure growth of the AD industry and enable precise monitoring and growth predictions of the industry.

Overview of the Anaerobic Digestion Infrastructure in the UK:

There are 214 AD plants in the UK accepting a variety of
feedstock types: Food Waste, Farm Wastes, Purpose Grown
Crops and Waste Water & Sewage with:
- an overall capacity to process more than 5 million tonnes of
material per annum
- a total installed generating capacity of over 170MWe
Two of these plants inject bio-gas directly into the gas grid

It is important to note that the report covers the UK AD industry as a whole, including the water industry and sites accepting food waste and farm-based waste processors. So dividing the industry in three main categories we have: Waste Fed, Farm Fed and Sewage treatment facilities.

Waste Fed AD Plants

The AD plants accept feedstock, in other words, they accept food waste from commercial & industrial sources and/or municipal source segregated waste.

Nowadays there are 44 Waste-Fed AD plants in the UK capable of processing around 3.7 million tonnes per year and a potential to generate 54MW of electricity. Only one of these plants injects bio-gas directly into the gas grid.

Farm Fed AD Plants

As defined by the Environmental Agency farm fed AD plants must be on-farm and process only manure/slurry’s and purpose-grown crops.

The report determined that there are 24 farm fed plants operating in the UK today with a capacity to process around 200k tonnes of feedstock per year.

Sewage Treatment Facilities

These facilities are not listed on the AD Map but since the water industry has used AD as a sewage treatment method for many years WRAP and NNFCC concluded they must be included in the report.

In total there are 146 sewage treatment AD plants in the UK, capable of processing up to 1.1 Million tonnes of feedstock per annum and the potential to generate up to 110MW of electricity. Only one of these plants injects bio-gas directly into the gas grid.

Conclusion

Overall the report shows a positive growth for the Anaerobic Digestion Industry but careful interpretation and caution is needed. WRAP and the NNFCC will continue to review (on a month-to-month basis) developments in the infrastructure of the AD industry in the UK.

About NNFCC

The NNFCC is the UK’s National Centre for Biorenewable Energy, Fuels and Materials. For more information visit the NNFCC website here.

Click here for the full report.

Back in September 2010, Conservative MP for Brentwood and Ongar, Eric Pickles, unveiled the plans of a scheme to support councils who wish to introduce, retain or reinstate weekly collections of residual household waste. At that time organic and food waste were not qualified for collections. Which meant householders would still have to hold on to their food waste for up to two weeks.

Last Friday as Mr Pickles announced that the scheme is now open for application he also stated that weekly food or organic waste collections will qualify for support.

The Conservative MP said: “This scheme will literally help stop the rot. Over the last decade, we have witnessed a massive decline in the number of households getting weekly collections and an increase in people having to store food waste and nappies for up to two weeks.

“It signals that a shift in the approach and attitude towards rubbish and recycling collections can happen. This new approach puts the householders, the environment and value for money at the forefront of how councils should think about a weekly waste collection”.

The £250 million fund will be made available to local authorities over three years; £50 million in 2012/13, £100 million in 2013/14 and £100 million in 2014/15. Any local authority can lead a bid and there are no limits to how much funding an authority can bid for.

The scheme will also accept bids from consortiums constituted of businesses and third parties. Bids from groups of local authorities will be accepted too.

Caroline Spelman, Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, said: “We want to help people to go green by making it easier for them to do the right thing. This scheme will encourage councils to provide the services we believe residents really want, without sacrificing the environment.”

Detailed information on the scheme can be found at: Supporting Weekly Collections Prospectus.

The initiative behind this scheme should help councils increase the frequency of waste collections and residents will see that their tax money is being well spent.

But after the food waste is collected it’s when another problem emerges. What to do with it?

With landfill tax, set to reach £64 per tonne in April, reaching sky high levels and costing councils millions of pounds each year. Local authorities must also have food waste management and recycling plans in place. Hence Wrap’s £10m fund for food waste processing.

Eco Food Recycling collecting commercial food waste.

When the country is gripped in sub zero temperatures nobody thinks of the “poor old bin man ” who has to go out in all weather conditions.

Although extreme weather causes problems for all refuse collectors it is the companies that have commercial food waste collections that face the biggest problems.

A lot of pubs and hotels who have food waste collections to improve their recycling figures along with adding to their CSR ( corporate social responsibility ) put the food waste into the bins “naked”, meaning that no bags are used.

In the warmer weather this is fine but in the current climate this causes major problems when attempting to empty commercial food waste bins:

• Food waste is very heavy
• Food waste is predominantly water
• Food waste bins are generally left outside, to the elements
• Frozen food waste does not easily come out of the bin when emptied into the refuse cart
• The weight of the food waste puts extreme pressure on the bin when lifted, if it does not exit the bin because it is frozen and can be potentially dangerous causing the bin to break

Of course the answer is heated food waste bins to keep the temperature of the food waste at a level to stop it freezing.

Although this will never happen it does prove that there is a problem and it is the poor old bin man who is left to clear up the rubbish,yet again.

It is now a legal obligation to sign a declaration on your waste transfer note that you have applied the waste hierachy, meaning that food waste must be recycled before the option of sending it to landfill. This declaration is signed by the producer of the waste.

Eco Food Recycling the leading collector of commercial food waste in the south of england are noticing that more and more of their prospective clients were not told by their current waste carriers for the need to have their food waste recycled as opposed to sending to landfill in the general waste bin.

And by educating the customer that it is a legal obligation to have the food waste recycled, Eco Food Recycling have gained many new clients of all sizes and from various sectors including Hotels, Restaurants, Colleges, Universities, Food Producers and Schools.

Food waste from the catering and hospitality sector

For many commercial food waste collection carriers getting new customers has been a problem when the price charged for a 240 ltr food waste bin does not compare to the  price for an 1100 ltr general waste bin.

Until legislation is brought in then the waste producer will obviously choose the cheapest option until forced to do so.This is a problem that many food waste carriers have faced, until recently.

The drivers in food producers having their commercial food waste collected are:

• To improve their CSR ( corporate social responsibility ) This is generally from the larger companies who need to show to their customers, staff and shareholders that they are doing everything to help the environment are morally bound to recycle their food waste.
• To divert their food waste from landfill and aim to have a zero waste to landfill solution. This has been adopted by many blue chip companies including M & S.
• Rising annual landfill tax is forcing many businesses to recycle their food waste as at least a cost neutral excerscise if not actually saving money in the first year.
• Complying with their declaration as regards the Waste Hierarchy.

It is this last point that has been missed by many carriers when tendering for new food waste business or looking to retain their current customers. Below is taken straight from the DEFRA website:

Waste Hierarchy

Many businesses are unaware of how significantly waste impacts on their bottom line. As the demand for materials grows worldwide, raising input costs, it makes sense for businesses to adopt the waste hierarchy.

Article 4 of the revised EU Waste Framework Directive (Directive 2008/98/EC) sets out five steps for dealing with waste, ranked according to environmental impact – the ‘waste hierarchy’.

Prevention, which offers the best outcomes for the environment, is at the top of the priority order, followed by preparing for re-use, recycling, other recovery and disposal, in descending order of environmental preference.

The waste hierarchy has been transposed into UK law through the Waste (England and Wales) Regulations 2011. The Regulations came into force on 29 March 2011. The provisions relating to the hierarchy (set out at in Regulations 12, 15 and 35) will come into force on 28 September 2011.

What you need to do

If your business or organisation (including local authorities on behalf of householders) produces or handles waste (this includes importing, producing, carrying, keeping or treating waste; dealers or brokers who have control of waste, and anyone responsible for the transfer of waste), you must take all such measures as are reasonable in the circumstances to:

• prevent waste, and
• apply the waste hierarchy when you transfer waste.

Basically this means that producers of food waste have no alternative in recycling their food waste ( if they have the option to do so ) as opposed to sending it to landfill.

This point has not been overlooked by Eco Food Recycling, the southern based food waste carrier and broker, who offer a national food waste collection service with a zero waste to landfill ethos. They have increased there customer base in very difficult economic times and have provided a service that is wanted and required by the introduction of the Waste Hierarchy.

Food waste at landfill

Back in July last year the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) launched a scheme to finance the instalment of energy-from-food-waste bioprocessing plants for councils and businesses that were interested in reaping the financial benefits of such practice.

Since then only 7 projects have been submitted, all by companies, of which one has been granted the funding. Councils are yet to submit their projects.

“To date, we have seven formal applications in the pipeline, which we are very pleased with at such an early stage of the process. We would certainly look at applications from councils who apply. To date no councils have applied for the AD Loan Fund.” said a WRAP spokesman.

The AD Loan Fund

The ADLF (Anaerobic Digestion Loan Fund) can provide up to £1 million for local authorities private sector or community sector organisations to invest in equipments to optimise and increase food waste collection from small to medium sized enterprises, public sector buildings and larger businesses, and process it in anaerobic digestion (AD) plants.

With landfill tax due to increase to £64 per tonne this year councils could make significant savings by making use of the AD loan fund to invest in energy-from-food-waste bioprocessing plants and divert as much food waste as possible from landfills.

But it is not only on the financial side that councils would be reaping benefits. Environmentally speaking they would reduce their overall carbon footprint and contribute towards a zero waste Britain.

Applications for the current round of funding under the Anaerobic Digestion Loan Fund (ADLF) can be submitted to WRAP before 30 April this year. Individual loans range from £50,000 to £1 million, over a five-year payback period.

According to WRAP the fund is intended to be administered over a four-year period, with phased applications windows from July-October 2011, January-April 2012, June-September 2012 and December-March 2012/13.

Did you know that every year here in the UK we throw away 7.2 million tonnes of food from our homes? This costs an average family, with children, around £680 a year or £50 a month, not to mention the environmental implications.

1 – Learn from Previous Years

I’m sure this is not your first Christmas and it won’t be your last either, so by trying to remember what was wasted last year could help you reduce your waste this year.This can be hard because everybody wants to make sure they don’t skimp on their Christmas dinner but try to be realistic with portion sizes.

Remember what the least popular dishes from last year and either make less of them or substitute them with new dishes this year and keep a record for future years.

2 – Store and distribute.

Plastic containers are an option to store your leftovers but to avoid eating turkey, pumpkin pie and other sliced, diced and baked food from Christmas until mid January, why not distribute some leftovers to your relatives? Prepare take away portions into plastic containers for them to take away with them when they leave.

3 – Be Creative with your Leftovers

There are countless options to turn your leftovers into delicious and creative meals. Sandwiches, curries and stews can be made with leftovers from turkey and ham. Turkey’s carcass is well know to make a good stock but if you don’t feel like doing it straight away you can freeze and use it on a later date.

Smoked salmon leftovers can be added to scrambled eggs and put onto toasted muffins or toast. A great option for Boxing Day breakfast with a Bucks fizz!

LoveFoodHateWate.com has an extensive list of ideas and suggestions to help you throw away as little food as possible this holiday.

4 – Organise a Neighbourhood Collection Service

If your county doesn’t have a food waste collection service try to organize an independent food waste collection service from an independent food waste collection and recycling company like Eco Food Recycling.

Not every Local Authority operates a kerbside collection for residential food waste and commercial food waste is totally neglected leaving Hotels, Restaurants, Pubs, Schools and Company Canteens to use Eco Food Recycling in their quest to divert food waste from landfill.

Any business that requires a food waste collection in the UK can contact Eco Food Recycling who will arrange for your food waste to be fully recycled and improve your carbon footprint. At the same time your CSR will benefit from a zero waste to landfill solution.

Those were our tips to help you reduce food waste these holidays. Got a tip you would like share? Use the comments below or head to our Facebook Page and post your tip there.

WRAP’s survey was commissioned in partnership with the Association for Organics Recycling (AfOR), the Anaerobic Digestion and Biogas Association (ADBA) and the Renewable Energy Association (REA). They found that separate food waste collection by local authorities rose from 36,000 tonnes in 2008/09 to over 110,000 in April-December 2009. The amount collected has increased six-fold since 2007/08.

Since 2006, WRAP and the afore mentioned industry organisations, have been analysing the UK’s organics recycling industry but this year’s methodology has been improved compared with that applied in previous years. This has ensured the results are more reliable and comprehensive, it has also strengthened insights into their results and the implications.

The study is a complete analysis of the UK’s organic recycling industry from segregation for collection, to the full range of organic waste treatment processes, including anaerobic digestion (AD), in-vessel composting (IVC), mechanical biological treatment (MBT), open air windrow (OAW) composting and thermophilic aerobic digestion (TAD).

Highlights Fact & Figures

• A total of 309 organics recycling sites were identified as operational in 2009, comprising 281 permitted composting sites, 17 AD sites, nine MBT sites, plus two TAD sites (described in Section 3.1).
• Just under 6 million tonnes (Mt) of organic waste was treated at these sites in 2009, this represents an 8.9% growth from the 2008/9 survey excluding MBT.
• 5.5Mt of waste recycled at AD, permitted composting (IVC and OAW) and TAD sites, representing 93% of the total quantity of input waste to the industry
• 0.4Mt processed at MBT sites
• The industry was dominated by a large number of operators running one or two sites (75% of all operators are in this category
• The aggregate turnover of the UK organics recycling industry was estimated to be £229M (Section 3.3.2, Table 3.19);
• The permitted composting sector was estimated to have a turnover of £187M;
• Turnover per tonne of material at composting sites ranged from £30 (OAW composting systems) to £61 (IVC systems);
• The AD sector was estimated to have a turnover of £11M, calculated to be equivalent to £105/t;
• Business rates were estimated to cost composting sites £2.45/t of material processed
• A minimum of 2325 full-time equivalent (FTE) employees were engaged in organics recycling
• The composting sector is thought to be largely reliant upon gate fees as the primary source of revenue in their business models.
• Aerobic composting was the dominant treatment method, accounting for 91% of permitted/licensed sites and 90% of waste. 17 AD plants (5.5%) were in operation, although these only treated 1.0% of the total quantity of input waste.

For a copy of the full report click HERE.

As a succinct conclusion from this survey we can say that that the quantity of compost manufactured in the UK is growing year on year and still is the main organic waste treatment process. However, food waste recycling by IVC (in vessel composting) showed the greatest increase in quantities of food waste treated. While Anaerobic Digestions (AD) showed no significant changes but new government policies to take place in the following years will certainly change those figures.

These findings are in line with Eco Food Recycling’s growth rate, who have recently achieved the staggering mark of 1 million kilos of food waste collected and recycled in only 8 months of operations. Since this figure was reached the company has reached it’s next million in only 3 months and business is growing at a rapid rate.

The contents of this article used as reference data from the following websites:

http://www.organics-recycling.org.uk/
http://www.wrap.org.uk/
http://www.adbiogas.co.uk/
http://www.r-e-a.net/

The landmark of 1,000 tonnes of food waste which is collected and then recycled at Eco Sustainable Solutions site next to Bournemouth Airport is turned into a nutrient rich compost after a prolonged 14 week process.

Eco Food Recycling collect commercial food waste from hotels, restaurants, pubs, shopping centres, food producers, schools and universities, leisure and theme parks as well as company canteens to name a few.

Although the vast majority of the commercial food waste is collected locally before being taken to the disposal site the company also operate a national food waste collection and recycling service through its network partnership programme.

Food waste collections are on the increase and Eco Food Recycling are being inundated with requests from all parts of the hospitality and catering sector of the market. By having a disposal site so close to hand as Eco Sustainable Solutions is a bonus as it is recognised as one of the finest in vessel composting facilities in the country.

Food waste will shortly be going to the new AD plant that is being constructed near Dorchester where the food waste will be turned into renewable energy.

Images courtesy of Deep South Media.

Commercial food waste - Andy Jones, Peter Hardy, Simon Heaps

Eco Food Recycling Directors Andy Jones and Simon Heaps with Peter Hardy from Eco Sustainable Solutions

Commercial food waste collections are now made in Dorset, Hampshire, Berkshire, Witshire, Surrey and Sussex on their fleet of vehicles but Eco Food Recycling are now also able to offer a national food waste collection service through their national partnership programme.

Food waste created from the catering and hospitality sector

Southern based commercial food waste collection and recycling company Eco Food Recycling have seen dramatic growth in their business as they enter their second year of food waste collections.

The company who are now the leading southern independant food waste collection and recycling specialist commenced commercial food waste collections in August 2010 and by the end of December last year were collecting 30 tonnes of food waste per month.

With collections of commercial food waste coming from the catering and hospitality sector that includes Hotels, Restaurants and Pubs along with food producers and company canteens the rise in collections has increased in excess of 800% as the company are now collecting over 260 tonnes of food waste per month.

Commercial food waste that is collected by Eco Food Recycling can be either as a straightforward bin collection or in bulk by containers and  enclosed skip compactors where tonnage price and haulage is arranged.

Eco Food Recycling operate with their own vehicles throughout Dorset, Hampshire, Berkshire, Wiltshire, Surrey and Sussex whereby all commercial food waste collected is 100 % recycled following the company’s zero waste to landfill ethos.

As well as collecting commercial food waste on their fleet of vehicles Eco Food Recycling also offer a national food waste collection service through their national food waste collection partnership programme.

Hospitality and catering food waste

The hospitality sector includes hotels, pubs and restaurants when you are talking about food waste and Eco Food Recycling are collecting and recycling food waste from famous names such as Whitbread, Premier Inn,Beefeater, Hotel du Vin, Malmaison and Ramada to name but a few.

Catering food waste accounts for a high percentage of commercial food waste in the UK and includes schools, Colleges and Universities as well as company canteens. Eco Food Recycling are currently collecting from three B & Q sites at their headquarters in Chandlers Ford along with Universities at Southampton and Winchester as well as local schools in Bournemouth.

Eco Food Recycling use a local food waste disposal site in Bournemouth for all of their hospitality and catering food waste and  a lot of the food waste collected is from a local shopping centre and a nearby premium leisure park. Theme parks such as Paultons Park at Ower near Southampton have their food waste collected by Eco Food Recycling and have been reaping the rewards in their increased recycling figures.

Another major coup for the Ringwood based food waste collection and recycling company is the agreement to collect all food waste from 18 Waitrose supermarkets in the south of england.

As well as these large corporate names the company are also collecting food waste from businesses of all sizes as they too look to divert food waste from landfill.

Eco Food Recycling offer a national food waste collection, disposal and recycling service to the hospitality and catering sector in the UK

Caroline Spelman, Secretary of State DEFRA

DEFRA produced its Government Review of Waste Policy in England 2011  this week ( 14th June ) and food waste collections both commercial and domestic featured very highly as the Government looks to divert waste from landfill.

Caroline Spelman pointed out in her Ministerial Foreward:

Waste is a major contributor to methane emissions and, if not managed properly, can harm our environment and damage communities. Waste can also be a source of renewable energy, and a source of valuable materials to enable a more sustainable use of our material resources.

We are committed to working towards a zero waste economy as part of the transition to a green economy and our committment to be the greenest government ever.

Together we can go further and faster to move waste out of landfill towards greater recycling, re-use and, in particular, greater waste prevention.

Food waste in particular had a big part to play in the waste review and the following extracts highlighted the problems that food waste from the commercial and residential sectors can affect all of us.

We have already identified food waste as a priority waste-stream for action as it goes
to landfill in considerable quantities, and accounts for almost half of all waste CO2eq
emissions. The total annual food waste arisings in Britain are estimated at around
16 million tonnes with at least 40% of this disposed to landfill.

Our overall, long-term, vision is that:
■  We substantially reduce the amount of food wasted;

■ Food waste that does arise is recognised as a valuable resource, and is processed to produce renewable energy and a bio fertiliser so that nutrients are returned to the soil;

■ No food waste goes to landfill.

Landfill should be the last resort for biodegradable waste. The landfill tax will remain the key driver
to divert waste from landfill and remains necessary to ensure we meet key EU targets in 2020.

These are some key points that have been selected so that commercial food waste can be identified to be diverted from landfill and processed either by IVC ( in vessel composting ) or AD ( anaerobic digestion ).

Eco Food Recycling offer a commercial food waste collection and recycling service across Dorset, Hampshire, Wiltshire, Berkshire, Surrey and Sussex and now are pleased to announce that they can offer a national food waste collection and recycling service through its extensive partnership programme around the UK.

These are very busy and exciting times for Ringwood based food waste specialists, ECO Food Recycling Ltd. Since they started trading in May 2010 there has been a steady build up of interest and business, with many local and national companies adopting a food waste recycling policy.

The most recent blue chip company to utilise the service is Waitrose, the food chain of the John Lewis Partnership.  Cawleys, who have the national food waste contract for the John Lewis Partnership, have awarded the southern area to ECO Food Recycling.

After several meetings and a site visit to ECO Sustainable Solutions at Parley, Waitrose Recycling & Waste Manager, Mike Walters and Cawleys key account manager for Waitrose, Fiona Serrecchia, were more than satisfied that ECO Food Recycling would be able to offer the level of service and support Waitrose required.

ECO Food Recycling will be collecting from eighteen Waitrose supermarkets in the South of England. There will be collections twice a week from June, including local stores in Ringwood, Winton, Parkstone, Wimborne and Christchurch. Initially the waste will go for composting at ECO Sustainable Solutions in Parley but, once their AD plant (Anaerobic Digestion) at Piddle Hinton is operational later this year, all of the waste from the 18 branches will be turned into renewable energy.

Mike Walters of Waitrose says “We’re passionate about protecting the environment – and so are our customers. We are constantly working across our business to minimise our impact.  We’ve been sending food waste to anaerobic digestion since 2008, and for us it is the best route for disposing of the food we cannot use, as it produces a positive output.  We’re also dedicated to reducing food waste throughout our supply chain and promoting practical ways to help shoppers reduce their food waste at home.”

Month-on-month collection figures have risen dramatically as more and more business see the benefits of recycling their food waste. On average, ECO Food Recycling are now collecting over 100 tonnes of food waste a month which will increase once Waitrose collections commence. Although this waste stream is only 20% of the volume of any businesses waste it can often equate to 80% of the weight. By having it collected a business can make a significant reduction in their carbon footprint figures, manage their waste streams more effectively and recycle in a more environmentally friendly manner.

With the impending waste review likely to outline stricter guidelines for the disposal of food waste, ECO Food Recycling Director Andy Jones feels now is the time for companies to act “ So many companies wait until the last minute to implement change and the vast majority have no idea how much food waste they produce. It can take time to bed in a food waste solution so we work very hard to ensure our customers have the right solution for the amount they produce, taking into account seasonal fluctuations and any other influencing factors”

For further details contact:  sales@ecofoodrecycling.co.uk or view the companies website www.ecofoodrecyling.co.uk

Food waste at landfill

With the imminent publication of the DEFRA’S waste review strategy next week, which is expected to propose legislation on food waste being diverted from landfill in the future,momemtum is building from many sectors to divert food waste from landfill immediately.

Eco Food Recycling the southern based food waste collection and recycling company who offer a national UK food waste collection round are being inundated with enquiries to collect commercial food waste from businesses of all sizes.

Hotels, Restaurants, Pub chains,Schools and Universities, Company Canteens, Supermarkets and Food Producers are among the businesses that are looking to start the service from Eco Food Recycling shortly as they look to increase their recycling figures by diverting the food waste from landfill and having it 100 % recycled.

With the recent rise in landfill tax the monetary factor for food waste collection and recycling can actually become “cost neutral” as environmentally minded companies look to recycle food waste before legislation forces them in the future.

Food waste recycling normally is split into two processes, AD ( anaerobic digestion ) and IVC ( in vessel composting ) and Eco Food Recycling are fully committed to both food waste recycling methods as they support their zero waste to landfill ethos, now and in the future.

Currently all food waste collected by Eco Food Recycling is taken to Eco Sustainable Solutions near Bournemouth Airport where the food waste is processed by in vessel composting. In the early stages of 2012 a new AD plant will be opened in West Dorset and the food waste will be turned into renewable energy.

Eco Food Recycling offer  commercial food waste collection and recycling rounds in Dorset, Hampshire, Wiltshire, Berkshire, Surrey and Sussex along with a national food waste collection service in association with its partnership programme around the UK.

Trelawney Dampney - MD - Eco Sustainable Solutions

Eco Food Recycling collecting from a leading pub chain

Eco Food Recycling the leading southern based food waste collection and recycling company will soon be sending their food waste collections to AD ( anaerobic digestion ).

Currently all food waste collected by Eco Food Recycling is taken to an IVC ( in vessel composting ) facility where after a prolonged 12/14 week process the food waste is turned into compost. The site is owned and operated by Eco Sustainable Solutions who are building a new AD plant near Dorchester that is due to open in the early part of 2012.

Eco Food Recycling collect commercial food waste from Hotels, Restaurants, Pubs, Shopping Centres, Leisure Parks, Company Canteens, Care Homes,Food Producers, Supermarkets, Schools and Universities along with individual outlets from businesses of all sizes on their collection rounds.

A national food waste collection service is now available from Eco Food Recycling in co-operation with their extensive partnership programme around the UK. Operating a zero waste to landfill ethos all food waste that is collected is 100% recycled using either IVC or AD technology.

Anaerobic Digestion processes take food waste and turn it into renewable energy. This is a fully sustainable solution for businesses that are looking to divert food waste away from landfill.

Eco Food Recycling operate a food waste collection and recycling service in Dorset, Hampshire, Wiltshire, Berkshire, Surrey and Sussex along with a nationwide food collection service on demand.