A new report from the Bio-based Industries Consortium (BIC) and Zero Waste Europe (ZWE) reveals that most bio-waste in the EU—such as food and garden waste—remains unused, missing an opportunity to support bio-based industries and biomanufacturing. Despite mandatory separate collection of bio-waste across EU Member States since January 2024, inefficient collection systems persist in many countries.
Currently, 74% of food waste in the EU is not captured, resulting in significant landfill emissions and forgoing valuable resources that could be converted into compost or high-value bio-based products. According to the report, this underutilised resource could alleviate Europe's food waste challenges, enhance circularity, and contribute to the EU's green transition and strategic autonomy goals.
The second edition of the report, which updates findings from 2019, shows that bio-waste capture has improved by less than 10%, now reaching just 26% of theoretical potential. It features best practices in municipal waste management and examples of bio-based industries transforming waste into valuable products.
BIC Executive Director Dirk Carrez highlighted the role of the bio-based sector in innovatively valorising bio-waste. “More efficient capture will allow more bio-waste to be transformed into bio-based products, driving biomanufacturing and sustainability,” Carrez stated.
ZWE's Head of Local Implementation, Jack McQuibban, called for stronger legislative measures. “The EU must implement legally binding targets for bio-waste quality and cap residual waste generation per capita. These steps are essential to incentivise better collection and treatment,” he noted.
The report underscores the need for robust EU-wide policies to harness bio-waste's full potential, fostering innovation and sustainability in the bio-based economy.
