It only takes ten minutes wandering down a supermarket aisle to spot hundreds of Australian-made food and beverage products. The Australian Trade and Investment Commission reports that the Australian food and beverage industry is its largest manufacturing sector, with multinationals through to smaller players meeting a wide range of market demand.
In the midst of this manufacturing flurry lies a significant amount of waste. As Australian businesses and individuals look to find more sustainable practices across all kinds of manufacturing, many food and beverage manufacturers are constantly iterating on how waste is dealt with in their processes.
Waste considerations for food and beverage manufacturers
The kind of waste generated by food and beverage manufacturers include organic waste, packaging waste and wastewater. Not only is management of these waste forms important for ongoing sustainability within the industry, but it's also crucial in making sure all manufacturing processes comply with necessary waste management regulations.
Organic waste
Organic waste poses a major challenge for manufacturers. It's often disposed of in landfill sites, which represents an immediate opportunity for more sustainability through diversion. By finding pathways to divert this organic waste into compost, manufacturers can not only reduce their greenhouse gas emissions, but they can also contribute to improving soil health through the results of the composting process.
Packaging waste
Packaging waste is also a large and ever-evolving challenge for food and beverage manufacturers. With each product reliant on packaging to safely move from production through to the end consumer, any solutions that can reduce the amount of packaging are of great interest in this field.
Recyclable or compostable packaging solutions are on the rise in response to this growing problem. More manufacturers are opting for sustainable packaging practices, minimising the harmful impact of each product and contributing to a greener environmental footprint for the company and consumer alike.
Wastewater
What's the least obvious form of waste in a manufacturing industry? Wastewater. As each production process can result in large amounts of wastewater, careful treatment of this byproduct is crucial to protecting the environment. Water reuse programs are one way manufacturers are looking to reduce their environmental impact.
Food waste
Finally, food waste can be a common problem for manufacturers in these industries. In response, many organisations are looking to reduce their food wastage, using tools such as improved inventory management, excess food donation or the repurposing of food waste into alternative uses.
No matter whether you're a major player in the Australian food and beverage manufacturing industry, or the manufacturer of a single niche product, building sustainable waste practices is paramount to contributing to a brighter environmental future.
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