INGREDIENTS
for a
CIRCULAR ECONOMY
Contents
Introduction
Farming
About
FoodDrinkEurope is the Brussels-based organisation of
Europe’s food and drink industry. Its mission is to facilitate the
development of an environment in which all European food
and drink companies, whatever their size, can meet the needs
of consumers and society, while competing effectively for
sustainable growth.
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Published June 2016, Brussels.
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Manufacturing
Consumers
Policy
Recommendations
03
04
06
20
22
3
Introduction
Enhancing a resource-efficient,
circular economy in the food and
drink industry
PREVENTION
A Circular Economy for the food and drink
industry means preserving the value of resources
(raw materials, water and energy) that go into
producing food and drink products for as long as
possible, while also paying attention to:
RESOURCE
EFFICIENCY
ENVIRONMENTAL
PERFORMANCE
CONSUMER
AWARENESS
SUSTAINABLE
SOURCING
4
Farming
Food and drink manufacturers are working together with
suppliers to improve farming practices. This helps farmers
provide better quality ingredients, so less goes to waste.
Food and drink manufacturers are also working with farmers
to improve storage and logistics, so that ingredients can stay
fresher for longer.
STORAGE
LOGISTICS
ORGANIC
FERTILISER
5
Belgian and Dutch food processors
help farmers prevent food loss
Danone works with partners to turn
agricultural waste into fertiliser
In Belgium, food manufacturers and farmers jointly
developed an Integrated Quality Management Standard
for the arable crops and horticulture sectors.
Some criteria in the Standard are designed to avoid
food waste (e.g. storage conditions that keep crops
fresher for longer).
In France, Danone has worked with partners to build
a methanisation unit that turns agricultural waste into
fertiliser. The project’s success is ensured locally by
the participation of 48 of the 54 farmers on the Gavot
plateau, who occupy 86% of the catchment area’s
farmland.
Meanwhile, a number of members of the Dutch food
and drink association (FNLI) cooperate with farmers in
plant breeding and spoilage prevention before, during
and after harvest. For instance, breeding potatoes that
have the right shape for crisps or chips helps avoid
unnecessary losses during peeling and cutting in order
to reduce post-harvest losses.
The methaniser will produce 1,485,000 cubic meters
of biogas for injection into the natural gas distribution
grid, or 7.5 MWh. This will be the first French site to
inject biogas into the public grid. This project will thus
contribute to reducing greenhouse gas emissions by
more than 2,000 metric tons equivalent CO2 per year.
Photo credit: Danone
6
Manufacturing
When food is wasted, all of
the resources that went into its
production are lost – including
precious natural resources such
as water and fuel.
Not only does it represent a
missed opportunity to feed
a growing world population,
but it also has negative
environmental and economic
consequences. Food and drink
manufacturers are actively
working to prevent food
loss from arising during the
production process.
The industry also strives
to preserve the value of
resources, including water,
energy and materials, which
went into producing the food.
LOGISTICS
STOR
ORGANIC
FERTILISER
FARMING
FEED &
FERTILISERS
OTHER
SECTORS
INDUSTRIAL
SYMBIOSIS
EDIBLE
FOOD WASTE
BY-PRODUCTS
7
RAGE
WATER & ENERGY RECOVERY
CONSUMER
AWARENESS
INNOVATIVE PACKAGING
INGREDIENTS
FREEZING &
STORAGE
INSTRUCTIONS
CONSUMERS
FOOD AND DRINK MANUFACTURING
FOOD WASTE
PREVENTION
RECYCLING & RECOVERY
FOOD
DONATION
FOOD SURPLUS
VARIETY OF
PORTION SIZES
8
1.
PepsiCo: 93% of total waste put to
beneficial use
Preventing food loss by
optimising manufacturing
processes, training
employees and innovating
new products from leftover
by-products and ingredients
Many organisations are taking
concrete steps to avoid food loss
during processing. In a survey of
FoodDrinkEurope members, over 80% of
respondents stressed that they are trying
to identify causes of food waste where it
occurs and are optimising their production
systems to prevent it arising. Training
personnel to prevent food waste, such as
through awareness-raising, is also a key
step for over half of respondents.
When food losses cannot be re-worked
and fed back into the production line, food
and drink manufacturers explore other
food uses, such as purées, soups and
jams.
82%
81%
of respondents stressed
they are trying to
identify causes of food
wastage where it occurs
of organisations
are optimising their
production systems to
prevent it arising
PepsiCo continues to make investments to conserve
energy and raw materials, reduce waste in its facilities,
recycle containers, use renewable resources and
optimise packaging design to use fewer materials.
In Europe, 25 of PepsiCo’s manufacturing facilities have
achieved the goal of zero waste sent to landfill.
In 2013, nearly 93% of total waste generated by more
than 280 company-owned manufacturing facilities
was put to beneficial use, such as recycling or reuse;
only 7.2% was disposed of through more traditional
methods, such as landfills. This has been delivered
through effective measurement systems, developing
solutions to eliminate waste and strong engagement
with employees.
Beyond the production process, PepsiCo is always
looking for innovative ways to cut packaging waste as
part of its Global Sustainable Packaging Policy.
e
wast
food tion
n
preve
+50%
more than half of
respondents are
training personnel to
prevent food wastage,
such as through
awareness raising
9
EU project helps train Italian food
production engineers to prevent
food loss
The Italian food and drink federation (Federalimentare)
is a partner via SPES GEIE of the EU-funded
FoodWARD project, which aims at quantifying food
waste and delivering specific training focused on this
theme. It aims to deliver technical training to food
suppliers in order to reduce food waste by focusing on
the following themes:
•
•
•
•
•
compositional analysis of food waste and losses in
participating countries;
food waste quantification in milk, meat and canning
sectors;
training of production engineers in plants;
building awareness of waste problem and
reducing food waste and creating a sustainable
food future.
Nestlé employees reduce food waste
in the canteen
Nestlé runs a specific campaign to encourage its
employees to reduce food waste in canteens by inviting
them to take an appropriate portion of food on the
self-service buffet and allowing them to buy left-overs
and bring them home. This resulted in a 30% reduction
in food waste over six months in the international
headquarters.
Rejected fruits and vegetables:
a “juicy” business
Dutch producer Provalor uses rejected fruits and
vegetables from manufacturers and farmers to produce
juices. The remaining pulp is sold to a sauce producer.
Dutch ingredient producer reworks
bread into sourdough bread
Dutch ingredient producer Sonneveld has developed
a product that allows bread produced outside
specification to be reworked into sourdough bread.
Sonneveld is trying to convince industrial and smallscale bakeries on board to use this product and thereby
reduce food waste in the bread supply chain.
Potato processors find many uses
for potato cut-offs
Most potato processors use cut-offs of potatoes to make
potato flakes or purées. Possibilities for future innovation
from cut-offs and shredded potatoes include hash
browns and other formed products.
The wet starch by-product from the cutting process
also finds other uses as in many cases it goes to potato
starch industries or is being used for the production of
bioplastics.
10
2.
Edible non-sellable food is
redistributed to feed people
Food and drink manufacturers
actively work to prevent food losses
from occurring during the production
process.
However, food or its packaging may
occasionally be damaged during the
production process, making it perfectly
edible but unsuitable for sale.
In such instances, FoodDrinkEurope
has developed an industry toolkit
on food waste, where it encourages
food and drink manufacturers to find
alternative channels, such as food
donation partners or markets, to
redirect surplus food to people.
Kellogg Europe committed to
diverting edible non-sellable
food to people
Since 2013 when Kellogg launched Breakfast for
Better Days, a global programme to provide food for
communities in need, Kellogg’s European operations
have committed to diverting edible non-sellable food
to people. Kellogg developed a new set of product
donation guidelines which has made the donation of
food easier.
Kellogg has also committed to helping European Food
Banks improve their capacity by making cash donations
to support their growth and is also working with food
banks to overcome some of the local barriers to food
redistribution.
During 2015, Kellogg operations in Europe donated
1.110 tonnes of food to food banks and food
redistribution charities in 15 European countries.
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3.
By-products are used as
animal feed and as inputs
for other industries, while
waste can be turned into
fertiliser and energy
When channels for surplus food to be
consumed by people are not available,
animal feed is a good alternative,
since it indirectly goes back into the
food chain. Animal feed also provides
a way to valorise trimmings and other
products that are not fit for human
consumption.
Meanwhile, food and drink production
waste can be turned into fertiliser,
which helps to enrich the soil for new
ingredients to be grown. In addition,
the energy from agricultural waste can
also be used as a renewable energy
source.
OTHER
SECTORS
By-products used
to feed animals
Production waste
turned into biogas
Waste from factories
turned into fertiliser
Production waste used
as alternative fuel
12
Whey in Croatian dairy producer’s
wastewater transformed into
animal feed
At Croatian food producer Belje’s dairy factories,
remains of whey represent a burden in waste water,
making the treatment of waste water very expensive.
Belje is now partially shipping whey, a by-product in its
dairy plant, to a biogas facility. Whey is also partially
used as wet feed on pig farms.
Annual production of whey is roughly 55 thousand tons.
Currently, 10% of Belje’s annual production of whey is
used in the bio-gas plant and 90% is used as pig feed.
By directing whey to re-use Belje achieves 70,000 Euro
of savings per year.
Turning by-products from bakery and
confectionary factories into animal
feed at Fazer
In Finnish food producer Fazer’s bakery and
confectionary factories and mill and mixes in 2014, 90%
of the total amount of waste was recycled or recycled
as energy. Most of the unsellable by-products from
production is recycled as raw material for bio-ethanol,
and the rest is used as animal feed and also donations
to food aid if possible.
For instance, in 2014 Fazer began a partnership with
Lahti Energia for the utilisation of oat husks from milling
operations for power generation.
Nordic meat producer finds many
uses for inedible animal parts
Nordic meat producer HKScan has been putting
into place different measures to increase industrial
symbiosis. Food industry manufacturing processes are
optimised and surplus food is redirected to feed people
or animals to prevent food waste.
Meanwhile, the parts of the animals that are not sold as
food are used for pharmaceuticals, food ingredients,
animal feed, pet food and biodiesel for renewable
energy. Wastewater sludge and cow stomach content
are turned into biogas, resulting in renewable energy
for car fuel, electricity and heating and nutrients for soil
improvement and organic fertilisers.
By-products from Croatian meat
processor used as pet food and
other animal products
Of the total volume of all categories of waste for
Croatian meat processor PIK Vrbovec, approximately
70% is recycled or reused. Of the by-products
categorised as animal by-products, the majority of it
(57%) is used in the nearby biogas plant, while the
remainder is sold to companies producing pet food,
animal proteins and animal fat.
Annual savings resulting from this novel approach to
industrial symbiosis amount to 330,000 euros.
13
Factory waste from canteens serves
as useful compost
Alternative fuels from Unilever’s
process waste
Unilever’s factory site canteen waste is being used for
vermicomposting. The compost is used to grow more
vegetables for the kitchen on site.
Ben & Jerry’s ice cream company is powering one of
the boilers at a Swedish factory by using fatty acid
by-product from ice cream production as an alternative
fuel.
Nestlé factory achieves zero waste
to landfill turning waste into energy
Another example of waste to energy is Hellmann’s
mayonnaise factory waste production can be recycled
to produce bio-diesel.
Nestlé’s factory in Fawdon has achieved zero waste to
landfill by turning waste from the confectionery site’s
manufacturing processes into renewable energy and
clean water through anaerobic digestion (AD).
Every day, up to four tonnes of solid waste residues – a
mixture of rejected chocolates and sweets, along with
leftover residues of starch and sugar – are broken down
and partially dissolved using 200,000 litres of liquid
waste from the site’s cleaning processes to create a
‘chocolate soup’. This is fed into an oxygen-free AD
tank, where bacteria breaks down the biodegradable
material and converts it into by-products such as
biogas, which is used to meet 5–8% of the site’s energy
needs. As well as generating renewable energy, the
water discharged from the factory is now virtually clean.
Photo credit: Ben&Jerry.
14
4.
Innovative packaging
design can contribute
to reducing packaging
waste, but it should also
help improve the overall
environmental footprint of
the product.
While bearing in mind the variety of
functions that packaging must perform,
food and drink manufacturers are
taking action to improve the overall
environmental performance of their
products, including their packaging.
Packaging helps to prevent food
waste and extend the shelf life of food
and drink products through the vital
protective role it plays in helping to
ensure that the safety and quality of
food and drink products are maintained
from production to consumption.
Bio-based recycled plastic
Reduced packaging weight
Reusable transport packaging
Reusable packaging in production
15
Coca-Cola launches world’s first
plant-based, recyclable PET plastic
bottle
Coca-Cola unveiled the
world’s first PET plastic
bottle made entirely
from plant materials in
2015 at the World Expo
in Milan. PlantBottle*
packaging™ uses
patented technology that
converts natural sugars
found in plants into the
ingredients for making
fully recyclable PET
plastic bottles.
The packaging looks,
functions and recycles
like traditional PET but
has a lighter footprint on the planet and its resources.
Moreover, Plantbottle material can, in combination
with recycled PET produce a bottle from renewed and
recycled materials.
Spanish bottled water producers
commit to preventing packaging
waste
In 2012, the Spanish National Association of Bottled
Drinking Water (ANEABE) signed a voluntary
commitment called “2015 Naturally”** with the Spanish
Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Environment.
The main objective was to prevent the generation
of packaging waste by: reducing the raw material
used in the manufacture of primary and secondary
packaging by 10% by the end of 2015; maintaining the
best primary packaging ratio of the market in Spain;
implementing measures to improve PET packaging
recyclability and increasing recycled material in primary
and secondary packaging to reach 5% by the end of
2015. The initiative ends in the first trimester of 2016.
Photo credit: Coca-Cola.
Since 2009, Coca-Cola has distributed more than 35
billion bottles in nearly 40 countries using its current
version of PlantBottle packaging, which is made from up
to 30 percent plant-based recyclable materials.
The use of PlantBottle packaging has helped save
the equivalent annual emissions of more than 315,000
metric tonnes of carbon dioxide.
*
Unilever reuses transport packaging
for food products
A Unilever tea factory in Brussels is promoting greater
reuse of transport packaging by modifying the packs
so weaker postage tape can be used on the inbound
packaging, thus making it easier to reuse the packaging
and save resources. The supplier’s delivery trucks pick
up the packs and enable reuse of packaging for the
next load.
**
Photo credit: Unilever.
16
Croatian meat processor replaces
cardboard boxes with reusable
plastic boxes in production
5.
Where allowed by food
hygiene laws, investments
have been made to
recover and reuse water,
heat and steam, without
compromising food safety
Photo credit: PIK.
Croatian meat processor PIK Vrbovec has continuously
been using innovative packaging and packaging
materials and reducing CO2 emissions due to lower
packaging weight. For instance, reusable plastic boxes
were introduced as a replacement for cardboard boxes
in the production of fresh meat, and cardboard trays
were implemented in the production of processed meat
products.
With regards to polymer foils and bags, a project was
conducted to consolidate prices, design and materials
in order to generate benefits in terms of financial
savings, packaging optimisation and environmental
protection.
A circular economy is about preserving
the value of resources, including water
and energy, for as long as possible.
Food processing involves a number of
operations in which water and energy
are essential requirements, such as
washing, boiling and steaming.
European food and drink manufacturers
undertake significant efforts and
investments to ensure sound wastewater
treatment and energy recovery.
These actions allow water and energy to
be recovered and reused, either within
the factory, where allowed by food
hygiene laws, or by other users.
17
Water recovery and re-use
increasingly common for European
dairy producers
Water recovery and re-use is increasingly common
within dairy processing sites of European Dairy
Association members.
Water recovery and reuse
Innovative water treatment technologies, such as
reverse osmosis, allow sites to recycle waste water for
reuse across dairy operations from cleaning the filling
lines to pasteurising the milk. Several sites in the EU
have introduced this technology. Significant steps are
also being taken to improve the quality of waste water
and to reduce the impact on water basins.
Mars reuses heat from ‘green steam’
to melt chocolate
Heat and steam recovery and reuse
Steam generated from a nearby incineration facility
burning household waste is transferred to Mars’
Haguenau factory via 1,2km of underground pipes.
The heat is used mainly for melting chocolate to
produce M&M’s and to heat the buildings.
It has reduced the factory’s carbon dioxide emissions
by 8,700 tonnes annually and its emissions from energy
consumption by 60%.
The green steam system now meets 90% of the steam
requirement of Mars Chocolat France.
To achieve Mars’ target of zero carbon emissions by
2040, the next step will be to cover 100% of plant
demand with locally-generated green steam.
18
Photo credit: Coca-Cola.
Coca-Cola on track to meet 100%
water replenishment goal
In 2007 Coca-Cola set an aspirational goal with its
bottling partners to replenish the water it uses in its
finished beverages by 2020. Today Coca-Cola is on
track to meet its 100% replenishment goal in 2015—five
years ahead of schedule. In addition, Coca-Cola returns
the water used to produce beverages back to nature
through high-quality treated wastewater.
It is also working to upgrade its system-wide facilities to
improve water use efficiency— improved approximately
24% from 2004 to 2014—and implementing source
water protection plans and vulnerability assessments in
all facilities globally.
Based on independent third-party verification, and
thanks to many critical partners, the Coca-Cola system
is replenishing, or balancing, an estimated 94% of the
water used in its finished beverages based on 2014
sales volume.
Since 2004, Coca-Cola system has replenished
an estimated 153.6 billion litres of water back to
communities and nature through 209 diverse, locally
focused community water projects in 61 countries,
including many projects across Europe.
19
Capturing heat helps reduce energy
consumption at Kellogg’s UK
factories
Reusing steam saves water, energy
and money for Croatian margarine
producer
The engineering teams at the Kellogg factories in
Manchester and Wrexham have identified innovative
applications for the capture and use of heat as
an energy source, which has helped reduce gas
consumption. The Wrexham factory has initiated a
project to recover previously wasted heat from the
exhaust systems on the cookers, and to use it to
preheat the water going into the boiler.
At Zvijezda, Croatia’s largest producer of edible oils,
overheated steam is needed in the process of oil
refining and margarine production. Sudden chilling
transforms steam to water condensate. Previously the
condensate was wasted, thus wasting water and heat.
Meanwhile, the Manchester plant installed an advanced
heat pump system on the wastewater treatment system
to cool the wastewater treatment tanks down to the
required temperature, and also recover energy to heat
water for use in the factory for cleaning and staff use.
The heat pump is capable of producing 25% of the
site’s hot water demand.
Both projects have recognised energy reductions of
over 3,700MWh with a payback of less than four years.
The Manchester factory has reduced its greenhouse
gas emissions by 24% since 2009 and is now seen as a
global front runner within Kellogg for meeting reduction
targets. Across all of its European manufacturing
operations, Kellogg has reduced greenhouse gas
emissions by over 17% in the last 10 years.
With improvement of the process this condensate is
pumped back into heating facility, slightly heated and
returned back to process. In this way water as well as
heat is re-used. Savings are approximately 80,000 EUR
on annual basis.
20
Consumers
Households account for the
largest share of EU food
waste. Household food
waste is a key concern for
all members of the food
chain, because when food
is wasted all the resources
and effort that went into
producing the product are
wasted.
Food and drink
manufacturers are helping
consumers to prevent food
waste by contributing
to awareness-raising
campaigns, providing
information on how to
optimise the use and
storage of food products
and adapting packaged
portions to fit consumers’
needs.
Providing a variety of portion sizes
(e.g. single portion packs and family packs)
help consumers prepare the right amount of
food to fit their needs.
On-pack indications help consumers
measure the right amount of food, while
instructions help consumers to optimise the
storage and preparation of food.
Communication campaigns help to raise
consumer awareness and motivate
consumers to prevent food waste.
FREEZING & STORAGE
INSTRUCTIONS
CONSUMER
AWARENESS
VARIETY OF PORTION
SIZES
21
PepsiCo, McCain and Unilever in value
chain coalition to fight food waste
PepsiCo, McCain and Unilever
Food Solutions have joined forces
with WWF, Sodexo and other
companies to fight against food
waste in the food services sector,
starting in Europe.
The International Food Waste
Coalition was launched in 2015
and is undertaking concrete
actions to maximise the collective
impact.
The coalition is piloting a project in schools in several
EU countries to identify where food waste is happening
in the different steps of the chain, find efficient solutions,
and at the end of the chain, to create awareness among
students and teachers.
PG Tips food waste collection
campaign
A Unilever UK tea brand
(PG Tips) has driven an
awareness campaign to
include tea bags as part of
food waste collection and
infrastructure partnership.
The aim is to reduce the
amount of tea bags send for
disposal at landfill via a pledge campaign to educate,
motivate and change behaviour of UK tea drinkers.
*
**
French food and drink manufacturers
help consumers reduce food waste
To help raise awareness
about food waste, the
French food and drink
industry association (ANIA)
has developed an interactive
consumer-facing online
game about food waste
reduction on its website
(JEUX NE GASPILLE PAS!)*.
It includes tips for
consumers about where to store food in the fridge to
keep food at its best.
UK food and drink producers inform
over 3 million Britons about food
waste prevention
The UK food and drink federation
helped to develop the award
winning ‘Fresher for Longer’
behavioural change initiative
launched in March 2013 under
the Waste & Resources Action
Programme’s (WRAP) Love Food
Hate Waste campaign.
It aims to demonstrate to
consumers how better use of
packaging – and the information
it carries – can help them reduce
the amount of food that gets thrown away at home,
saving them money and helping the environment.
On the day Fresher for Longer** launched, it reached
more than three million Britons through national press
and radio coverage and social media.
22
Policy
Recommendations
Taking food waste prevention actions that
address the whole food chain
To unlock further sustainable
growth and innovation for
a resource efficient, circular
economy in the food and drink
industry, we recommend:
Clarifying EU legislation to facilitate food
donation
9.
Set Green Public Procurement criteria that
observe overall life-cycle sustainability
performance of food and drink
products on a consistent, objective and
scientifically reliable basis
23
4.
Implementing the UN Sustainable
Development Goal on food waste at
EU level
Developing a common EU food
waste measurement methodology
aligned with global standards
6.
7.
Setting up a food waste
stakeholder’s platform with the
involvement of all food chain actors
and Member States
8.
€
Explore options to improve
understanding of date marking
without compromising food safety
and quality
10.
Maintain waste to energy as a
waste management option where
justified by life cycle thinking
Maximising the value of raw
materials by allowing more
materials to remain products or to
be classified as by-products
11.
Promoting investment in research
and development
Promoting continuous improvement
of the environmental performance
of food and drink products along
their life-cycle
12.
Focusing on consumer education
and changing public attitudes
towards waste minimisation
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@FoodDrinkEU
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