Animal by-products and food waste
Complying with the animal by-products regulations - how to deal with animal bodies, animal parts and food waste.
Animal by-products are entire animal bodies, parts of animals, products of animal origin or other products obtained from animals that are not intended to be eaten by humans.
Businesses that are likely to deal with animal by-products include:
- food retailers and manufacturers
- catering outlets
- butchers
- farmers
- gamekeepers
- animal feed suppliers
- vets
Animal by-products are regulated to protect human and animal health, as well as the environment. There are rules for collecting, storing, transporting, handling, processing, using and disposing of animal by-products. You may also need to comply with controls on the marketing and export of animal by-products and products derived from them.
This guide explains what animal by-products are. It describes the various animal by-product categories, and tells you how to handle, store and transport animal by-products. Finally, it explains how to dispose of animal by-products, animal carcasses and food and catering waste.
What are animal by-products?
What is animal by-product waste, and when catering waste is considered animal by-product waste.
Animal by-products (ABPs) are entire animal bodies, parts of animals, products of animal origin or other products obtained from animals that are not intended for human consumption. ABPs include:
- animal carcasses and parts of carcasses - including fish, butcher and slaughterhouse waste, fallen stock and dead pets
- digestive tract content
- manure from farmed animals, eg pigs, cattle and chickens
- ova, embryos and semen which are not intended for breeding purposes
- blood, hides, skins, hooves and horns
- shellfish and crustacean waste
- feathers, wool, hair and fur
- food waste of animal or fish origin no longer intended for human consumption - including former foodstuffs like eggs and milk, and cooking oil used to prepare animal products
Meat, fish and other material from animals become animal by-products when the material is no longer intended for human consumption. This is the case even if the material is still edible.
Detailed is available from the Department of Agriculture, Environment & Rural Affairs (DAERA).
Exemptions
ABP controls do not generally apply to:
- raw pet food sold directly to consumers
- liquid milk and colostrum disposed of or used on the farm where it was produced
- wild animals that are not suspected of carrying an infectious disease
- excrement from domestic pets, zoo or circus animals, horse stables or wild animals, eg pigeon droppings
- catering waste, unless it is to be used as animal feed, is going to a composting or biogas plant, or is from international transport, ie from aircraft or ships operating outside the European Union
Catering waste is waste food from:
- restaurants
- catering facilities, eg in offices
- household kitchens
If ABP controls do not apply to your waste, you must comply with your duty of care for business waste. Food businesses also have to comply with food waste rules when disposing of food and catering waste.
Animal by-products risks
ABPs pose potential risks to public and animal health. Improper use of animal by-products has caused outbreaks of serious diseases such as:
- foot and mouth disease
- classical swine fever
- avian influenza
- Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE)
There are rules in place to control these risks by setting out how you must collect, store, transport, treat, use and dispose of animal by-products.
Animal by-product categories
Different categories of animal by-products reflect the level of risk to public and animal health.
There are three categories of animal by-products (ABPs), depending on their potential risk to human and animal health. Different rules apply for disposing of waste in each category.
Category 1 animal by-products
Category 1 material presents the highest risk to human and animal health. Such material includes:
- animals or parts of animals considered specified risk material, ie most likely to harbour a disease - for example, transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSE) such as scrapie in sheep, or bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) in cattle
- animals that have been experimented on
- zoo and pet animal carcasses
- wild animals suspected of having an infectious disease
- catering waste from international transport, ie aircraft and ships
- animal tissue collected when treating waste water from category 1 processing plants
Category 2 animal by-products
Category 2 materials are considered high risk. These include:
- animals that are slaughtered to prevent the spread of disease
- manure and digestive tract content
- animals and parts of animals which die by means other than slaughtering, eg fallen stock
- animal tissue collected when treating waste water from category 2 processing plants
Category 2 is also the default status of any ABP not defined by regulations as either category 1 or category 3 material.
Category 3 animal by-products
Category 3 materials are considered low risk. They include parts of animals that have been passed fit for human consumption in a slaughterhouse, but which are not intended for consumption.
Category 3 also includes products of animal origin, or foodstuffs containing products of animal origin which are no longer intended for human consumption for commercial reasons, or due to manufacturing or packaging defects or other defects that do not pose a risk to public or animal health.
Mixing different categories of animal by-products
You must keep all three categories of animal by-products separate at all times. If you mix material from one category with material from another category, you must treat the whole mixture as being in the higher risk category. For example, you must treat a mixture containing categories 1, 2 and 3 as a category 1 material.
Category 2 is also the default status of any ABP not defined by regulations as either category 1 or category 3 material.
Detailed is available from the Department of Agriculture, Environment & Rural Affairs (DAERA) .
Disposing of animal by-products
How to dispose of animal by-products by each risk category - approved premises, treatment and disposal.
If you have animal by-products (ABPs), you must send them to approved premises for treatment or disposal. Ideally, different categories of animal by-product should be handled at different sites.
Any operator that uses or disposes of ABPs or derived products must be registered before commencing operations. If you wish to register, read more about .
The Department of Agriculture, Environment & Rural Affairs (DAERA) maintains a who have been granted approval for the storage, processing, treatment or disposal of ABPs.
Disposal of category 1 material
You must dispose of category 1 material by:
- direct incineration
- rendering - followed by incineration or landfill
See guidance on .
International catering waste may be disposed of at a landfill site authorised by the Divisional Veterinary Office.
Disposal of category 2 material
You must dispose of category 2 material by:
- direct incineration
- rendering or other authorised treatment process - followed by incineration, landfill, composting or biogas treatment
You can pressure-render category 2 material and then use it to produce organic fertilisers and soil improvers or use it in an approved composting or anaerobic digestion plant.
Find out more about .
You may apply a very limited number of category 2 materials (manure, digestive tract content, milk and milk-based products and colostrum) directly to land without processing provided there is no risk of transmitting a disease.
Disposal of category 3 material
You must dispose of category 3 material by:
- incineration
- rendering - followed by incineration or landfill
- anaerobic digestion
- alkaline hydrolysis plant
- composting or biogas plant
You can render category 3 material to produce pet food and organic fertilisers or soil improvers. You can also use rendered category 3 material to produce animal feedingstuffs, though there are some restrictions in place.
Certain category 3 materials such as raw milk, colostrum and products derived from these can be applied directly to land provided there is no risk of transmitting a disease. Shells from shellfish and eggshells may be applied to land in accordance with national rules.
Detailed is available from DAERA.
Disposing of animal carcasses
How to dispose of animal carcasses including farmed animals, pets and wild animals, and where to find advice.
Farmers are responsible for the disposal of their fallen stock. Any fallen stock should be collected, identified and transported without 'undue delay', ie as soon as reasonably practical.
For disposal of farmed animal carcasses under 48 months old, you should contact the (NFSCo) or your local Department of Agriculture, Environment & Rural Affairs (DAERA) .
For fallen cattle over 48 months old, you need to contact an approved transmissible spongiform encephalopathy (TSE) sampling site within 24 hours of the animal's death to have the animal collected, tested and disposed of. See further details in .
Animals usually regarded as farm species include sheep, cattle, pigs, goats, poultry, horses and other equine species.
Burying animal carcasses
You must not bury animal carcasses or parts of carcasses on your land. The exceptions to this are:
- during outbreaks of notifiable disease if there is a lack of capacity at rendering plants and incinerators
- if transporting the carcasses would spread disease
You must have permission from your local Divisional Veterinary Office before you bury carcasses. During disease outbreaks, you can get advice on suitable disposal methods by contacting your local Divisional Veterinary Office.
Burying pets and wild animals
You are allowed to bury dead pets on your own premises, in an authorised pet cemetery or landfill site.
Wild animals are not covered by animal by-product controls, unless they are thought to be diseased. Wild animals include:
- wild deer
- wild boar
- rabbits
- foxes
- rats
- squirrels
- moles
- wild birds
If you have killed a wild animal as vermin or to reduce its population, you need to dispose of the carcass appropriately. This includes animals caught in a trap or snare, and animals that have been shot. Wild animal carcasses are classed as waste, and you have a legal duty of care to handle, store and dispose of waste safely, so you don't cause pollution or attract vermin.
Burning animal carcasses
You must not burn any animal carcasses in the open. You can only burn animal carcasses if:
- you are in a designated remote area
- there is a disease outbreak and there is a lack of capacity at rendering plants and incinerators
- if transporting the carcasses would spread the disease
If you burn animal carcasses in an incinerator on your farm, you may need a pollution prevention and control permit or registered exemption depending on the size of your activity.
Disposing of food and catering waste
How to dispose of food, catering waste, former foodstuffs and international catering waste.
When food of animal origin is no longer intended for human consumption, it becomes an animal by-product (ABP). This may be when produce is removed from sale because it has passed its sell by or use by date, or because of damage, soiling or contamination to the produce or its packaging.
Waste rules for food businesses
Food businesses in Northern Ireland must present food waste for separate collection if they produce more than 5 kilograms of food waste a week.
These rules apply to:
- restaurants
- cafes
- hotels
- canteens
- pubs that serve food
- supermarkets
- shops that serve food
- schools
- colleges
- prisons
- nursing homes
- hospitals
- health and social care trusts
To determine how much food waste your business produces, remember that a domestic kitchen food waste caddy holds roughly 5 kilograms of food waste.
Businesses exempt from food waste rules
Your businesses are exempt from the regulations if:
- You produce less than 5 kilograms of food waste per week.
- You deal with catering waste that has arisen from international transport. International catering waste is a category 1 ABP and therefore requires specialist management.
Separately collected food waste must not be landfilled. Businesses must ensure food waste is not deposited in a lateral drain or sewer.
Catering waste
Catering waste is waste food from restaurants, catering facilities and kitchens. Catering waste which contains animal by-products includes:
- cooked or processed meat and fish
- bakery products containing meat, fish or dairy products
- cooking oil that has been used for cooking meat or fish
You can send catering waste to an approved composting or biogas facility.
Landfills cannot accept liquid waste so you should collect used cooking oil, store it in suitable containers and have it removed by an authorised waste carrier. Most used cooking oil is used to make biodiesel or is incinerated to generate electricity.
Catering waste does not include 'former foodstuffs' from retailers or food manufacturers.
Former foodstuffs
Former foodstuffs are foods of animal origin, or foods that contain products of animal origin, that are no longer intended for human consumption. This includes food that is waste due to manufacturing or packaging defects. Former foodstuffs do not include catering waste from restaurants, catering facilities and kitchens.
Waste from a factory that produces cooked meat is not catering waste - it is former foodstuff (category 3 animal by-product).
You must dispose of category 3 ABPs at , by rendering or incineration, or disposal at an approved biogas or composting plant. Generally, you cannot send category 3 animal by-products to landfill.
Raw meat or fish must not be sent to landfill.
Category 3 animal by-products include:
- raw meat, fish and eggs
- cooked meat and fish
- meat and fish products that require cooking before consumption
- catering waste other than international catering waste
Read more about animal by-product categories.
International catering waste from ships and planes
International catering waste is waste food from aircraft and ships that have called at airports or ports outside the European Union. It is classed as high risk material (category 1 ABP). You must dispose of it by incineration, rendering or burial in an approved landfill site.
Read more about disposing of animal by-products.
Detailed is available from the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA).
91香蕉黄色视频ing animal by-products
How to transport animal by-products, who is authorised to do so and what documentation you need.
You must collect and transport animal by-products (ABPs) in leak-proof, closed containers or sealed new packaging. You must keep each category of by-product separate and clearly labelled to avoid contamination.
Who can transport animal by-products
You must ensure that anyone removing your waste is authorised to do so. There is a two-tier which is operated by the Northern Ireland Environment Agency:
- If your carrier only transports ABPs, they should be registered as a lower tier waste carrier.
- If the carrier transports other types of waste, as well as ABPs, they must be registered as an upper tier waste carrier or broker.
You should ask for proof - such as a certificate or letter of registration - that an individual or business is authorised to handle or transport your waste.
Animal by-product transportation documents
All movements of ABPs, except manure, must be accompanied by a commercial document. This is different from a waste transfer note or hazardous waste consignment note.
The commercial document should include:
- a record of the origin and quantity of the material
- a description of the material, including the animal by-product category
- the date of transport
- the name and address of the carrier and receiver
- if the animal by-product is to be used for composting or pet food
- any approval numbers showing that the ABP has been treated and is therefore safe to be used
If you export ABPs or send them to be processed into pet food, you may also need a health certificate from your local Divisional Veterinary Office.
All original documents should accompany the ABPs during transit. The receiver of the ABPs must keep the original documents. The waste producer and the waste carrier must keep copies. You must keep all records for at least two years.
The Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) has guidance on the .
Loading and unloading animal by-products
Some loading and unloading of ABPs should only be done inside a building. This includes loading and unloading slaughter and butchery waste, and tipping animal by-products onto the floor or into a hopper.
If loading and unloading inside is not possible, you may be able to 'dock' your vehicle with the building and transfer ABPs under cover directly to or from the building. This is acceptable when loading intact animal carcasses.
You may get permission to unload certain ABPs in outside yards in very limited and tightly controlled circumstances.
For more information, read .
Handling and storing animal by-products
How to handle and store animal by-products, and comply with labelling and record keeping duties.
If you store animal by-product (ABP) waste for routine collection, you must keep it separated from other waste and store each animal by-product category separately.
You must store animal by-product waste in clean, sealed, leak-proof containers. Label all containers with the category of the material as follows:
- category 3 material - not for human consumption
- category 2 material - not for animal consumption
- category 1 material - for disposal only
You must not store ABPs where they could contaminate other foodstuffs or be exposed to animals or wild birds.
Use authorised waste carriers
Check that you are using an individual or business authorised by the Department of Agriculture, Environment & Rural Affairs (DAERA) for the storage, processing, treatment or disposal of animal by-product waste. Read DAERA's guidance note on .
Make sure that you complete a commercial document, recording the transfer of animal by-product waste. A commercial document is different from a waste transfer note or hazardous waste consignment note.
Record the date that the animal by-products were removed, a description of the material, and the name and address of the waste carrier and the receiver of the waste.
Keep a copy of all documents for at least two years. You may need to show them during an inspection.
Clean and disinfect containers after each waste collection.
Have an emergency plan, eg to avoid destroying large quantities of animal by-products because of a freezer breakdown or product recall.
You must not send to landfill any packaging that is significantly contaminated with animal by-product material, eg bloodstains. You must dispose of it as an animal by-product.
International catering waste is classed as a category 1 animal by-product and therefore requires specialist management - see disposing of animal by-products.