In February, Food Engineering Magazine published an article on tactics that food and beverage manufacturers are taking to reduce waste. Food and beverage processors are using a wide variety of methods to reduce waste; these efforts help meet company’s sustainability goals while offseting manufacturing costs.

The article includes some tips from RecyclingWorks for reducing waste. For instance, food and beverage manufacturers should consider:

• Donate mislabeled products
• Maximize recycling of cardboard, containers, paper, and shrink wrap
• Coordinate with suppliers to ensure they only ship materials that can be reused, recycled, or composted

For organic waste, there are options across the EPA food recovery hierarchy for diverting waste. Partner with a food rescue organization to donate surplus food. Food scraps can be used for animal feed or composting. Even line flushing materials can be put to use if sent to an anaerobic digestion facility to generate energy. Packaged foods that cannot be sold or donated, can be sent to a depackager which separates the contents from the packaging; these contents can also be fed into an anaerobic digester.

RecyclingWorks in Massachusetts is a recycling assistance program for businesses and institutions. If you need assistance with setting up a composting or recycling program, call our hotline: (888) 254-5525 or email us at info@recyclingworksma.com.