A-Z of Waste Management – U Unavoidable Food Waste

What is unavoidable food waste?

Unavoidable food waste is waste food or drink that is not normally edible, such as meat bones, eggshells, fruit skins, and tea bags. Avoidable food waste, on the other hand, describes food wastes that are, at some point, edible – for instance sliced bread, grapes, or chocolate. Whilst avoidable food waste can be minimised through changes to food consumption habits, it is more difficult to prevent arisings of unavoidable food waste. As such, unavoidable food waste often requires commercial treatment – an important process for the following reasons:

• Food waste is a valuable resource, that can be used to create secure, renewable energy for electricity, heat, and transport fuels
• It helps boost domestic food production by improving soil nutrient levels
• Ineffective waste management has human health implications (e.g. food waste can attract vermin), and treating waste is crucial in removing health hazards from waste streams
• Choosing to recycle food waste (rather than landfilling) lowers production of methane – a harmful greenhouse gas that is very dangerous in the midst of a climate crisis

The link between food waste and climate change has led to a commitment to reduce Scotland\’s food waste by 33% by 2025 (Scottish Government’s climate change plan). This target includes avoidable and unavoidable food waste, with a focus on prevention of waste, rather than treatment. The food waste hierarchy explains why food waste prevention is so important.

How can unavoidable food waste be treated?

Although waste prevention is often the best waste management option, only so much unavoidable food waste can be prevented. Currently, the UK produces a lot of food waste material that needs to be recycled or recovered. All food waste handling and processing must comply with the Animal By-Products Regulations (ABPR). These Regulations aim to prevent animal by-products (ABP) presenting a risk to health through the transmission of disease. Due to ABPR, food waste recycling occurs in enclosed plants, for instance Anaerobic Digestion (AD) and In-Vessel Composting (IVC) plants.

AD is a natural but accelerated process in which micro-organisms degrade organic matter in sealed vessels, in the absence of oxygen. This generates a biogas which can be used directly in engines, or as vehicle fuel. The number of AD plants in Scotland is growing, to get further use out of food waste, increase resource efficiency, and help tackle climate change.

IVC can be used to treat food and garden waste mixtures. These systems ensure that composting takes place in an enclosed environment, with accurate temperature control and monitoring. Whilst this process produces valuable compost, it does not provide energy, unlike AD.

The various benefits of food waste recycling, from either AD or IVC, are a clear indicator of how crucial it is for Local Councils to maintain separate food waste collections as much as possible. Collecting unavoidable food waste, and treating it commercially, is vital to implementing a more circular economy. The Waste (Scotland) Regulations 2012 reflect the importance of this by requiring all food businesses generating more than 5 kilograms in non-rural areas to recycle their food waste.

What are the implications of food waste recycling?

However, there can be some issues with AD and IVC  – for example, problems from odours, noise, and bioaerosols. Bioaerosols are the results of micro-organisms existing within the waste.  As a result of microbial activity within organic material, bioaerosols can be generated whenever large quantities of food waste are moved and treated. For enclosed treatment processes, high bioaerosol emissions can be expected when incoming waste is unloaded onto the site, when the waste is removed from the closed treatment areas, when waste material is shredded or sieved, and also when the final products are processed and packaged.

Bioaerosols have the potential to present environmental issues and occupational hazards at any waste treatment facility, if it handles large quantities of organic material. High bioaerosol concentrations have been linked to numerous serious health effects, including respiratory and gastrointestinal illnesses. As such, AD and IVC sites can be required to conduct bioaerosol monitoring, to manage the risk of bioaerosols.

How can Albion help?

Albion can supply consultants with the knowledge and expertise necessary for conducting a range of bioaerosol assessments, including occupational bioaerosol monitoring (assesses exposure for site staff) and environmental monitoring (determines possible exposure levels at sensitive receptors).

By analysing a site’s bioaerosol risks, and who may be affected by them, we can provide guidance on how to manage and lower a site’s bioaerosol emissions. Albion Environmental has numerous environmental monitoring specialists, trained to complete a wide range of services within the field of environmental monitoring. Find out more about the environmental work we do here: