The company, which in the past has had to turn away waste from customers including food retailers and manufacturers because of a lack of capacity, is bringing online an extra 5,000 tonnes a year capacity.
 The first new in-vessel being installed at the Bioganix site in Leominster |
The expansion within the 25,000 square foot site at Leominster, will bring Bioganix's overall capacity to 12,000 tonnes a year, meaning it can take more low risk “Category 3” animal by-products material and former foodstuffs. Former foodstuffs will not longer be allowed in landfills from December 31, 2005.
Demand
Nick Helme, managing director of Bioganix said of the expansion: “We have created the capacity because we felt that there would be an increasing demand in the near future for composting facilities to deal with category 3 and former foodstuffs waste.
“With this in mind, we are in the process of bringing in new composting vessels, a conveyor system and extended bio- filter as part of an extension that will enable the plant to take in larger amounts of Category 3 wastes and former foodstuffs.”
Developed by Bioganix itself, the first new vessel for the site is 12 metres long and is currently being installed. The second is larger at 20 metres in length and will be installed in the first week of April.
Raw meat and fish wastes were banned from landfill under the Animal By-Product Regulation two years ago. But waste producers were granted a transitional period on “former foodstuffs” – such as meat and fish-topped pizzas, sausage rolls and sandwiches – allowing time to develop options to divert the materials from landfill.
Treatment
Former foodstuffs are classed as low-risk Category 3 animal by-products. This waste can go to composting, biogas, incineration and rendering plants deemed suitable by the government.
At least 14 composting plants in the UK, including the Bioganix facility, have been approved to compost Category 3 waste under the Animal By-Products Regulations.
Subscribe for free