PROJECT DESCRIPTION
BACKGROUND
The European Union food and drink value chain causes 17% of the EUs direct greenhouse gas emissions and 28% of material resource use. European consumption patterns have global impacts, especially related to the consumption of animal protein and water use. In the EU, it is estimated that 90 million tonnes of food waste is produced every year, equivalent to 180 kg per person. In some EU countries, especially those in the south, the majority of food waste ends up in landfill. In Greece, for example, more than 95% of food waste ended up in landfill in 2013, either directly or indirectly.
The EU Landfill Directive (1999/31/EC) sets as a target the progressive reduction of biodegradable municipal waste going to landfill, to 35% of the 1995 disposal level by 2020, and the Circular Economy Package foresees a binding target to reduce landfill to a maximum of 10% of municipal waste by 2030. Furthermore, the latter foresees food waste as being one of the priority sectors that need to be addressed in a targeted way, to ensure that the interactions between the various phases of the cycle are fully taken into account along the whole value chain. It also foresees that measures will be taken so that foodstuff and by-products from the food chain are used in feed production without compromising safety.
OBJECTIVES
The main aim of the LIFE-F4F (Food for Feed) project was to evaluate, through a pilot-scale demonstration, an innovative and simple technology, and a low-emission process that enables the safe transformation of food waste, mainly from hotels (and more generally from the hospitality industry and restaurants), into animal feed components.
Food waste is aimed to be processed using a solar energy to pasteurise and dry food waste, a process that has not been tested or applied previously, either in Europe or elsewhere worldwide. The F4F process intended to address the need to reduce food waste going to landfill, and would support the implementation of separation schemes at source for food waste to create valuable raw materials for the production of food components.
This reuse process, in line with the circular economy concept, was expected to transform a waste management process into a feed producing one. As it utilised solar power (directly and indirectly), it was also a low energy and low carbon emission process. The project aimed to influence EU legislation on waste, the Circular Economy Package and the Roadmap to a Resource Efficient Europe.
Specific project objectives were to:
- Determine at pilot scale the quality of the animal feed components produced by both the waste source separation system operating in hotels and restaurants, and the innovative drying/pasteurising methodology based on solar technology;
- Verify the various technical aspects of the suggested process, the main components of which are: a) non-invasive, refrigerated, separate collection, b) hand sorting/removal of non-food wastes, c) grinding and pulverising, d) solar drying/pasteurising of the mixed food, and e) mixing with other feedstuffs (e.g. corn); and
- Evaluate economic and environmental parameters of the process and product (from the source to the shelf), as well as the commercial viability of full-scale units.
RESULTS
The LIFE-F4F (Food for Feed) project team established a pilot solar-powered food waste drying unit, demonstrated and optimised it during three operational periods in Greece. This innovative, in terms of using solar power, simple and low-emission technological process transforms food waste into animal feed components.
The project team determined the quality of the animal feed produced from the drying process and evaluated its appropriateness for pets and monogastric animals (poultry and pigs). They evaluated the economic and environmental (LCA) parameters related to the process and product, as well as the commercial viability of a full-scale unit through a business plan. In addition, they evaluated the policy parameters related to the proposed use of food waste and animal feed components, and from this proposed policy amendments.
At the end, the project had surpassed its environmental goals processing 550 metric tonnes of food waste and producing more than 150tn of animal feed components. The greenhouse gases (GHGs) avoided also exceeded targets, ranging between 837.4 and 1 383.8 metric tonnes of CO2 eq. This was estimated on the basis that the decomposition of food residues in a landfill generates between 120 and 220 metric tonnes of biogas (carbon dioxide and methane).
The project team conducted experiments to check the quality of the product from the pilot unit as feed for productive animals and pets, and it was found appropriate and possible/feasible for market use in the animal feed industry.
The team completed LCA and other studies, and developed technical and operational manuals, to support transferability and scale up. They transferred the pilot unit to project partner HMU (Hellenic Mediterranean University) for greater sustainability of the results, and HMU has funding for a larger up-scaled unit at its premises. This will lead to increasing environmental benefits beyond the project, and greater possibilities for replication.
