Keeping it under WRAP
Published : October 2007
The food industry disposes of millions of tonnes of organic waste each year, yet new legislation means that landfill will soon cease to be an option. Jayne Flannery looks at the processes which the most far-sighted in the industry are adopting
Take the food chain in its entirety from farm to fork and the by-products, rejects and leftovers represent a mountain of waste amounting to over a third of what is produced in the UK - a staggering total of 17 million tonnes. Legislation such as the EU Landfill Directive which demands dramatic reduction by 2020 and Defra's food industry sustainability strategy have forced the sector's hand and pushed it under an entirely new spotlight. The message from the government is blunt. Landfill sites are full. Leaving the industry with environmental taxes and waste handling costs which are set to rise by at least 20 per cent a year until 2011. A concern which could break down the industry as well as its waste.
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