A methanizer is designed to treat organic materials such as food or agricultural waste. The packaging of some products is not biodegradable and cannot be included in the supply of a methanizer. In this case, the necessary steps must be taken to ensure that only the organic part of the waste enters the methanizer.

When the owner of food products (producer, supermarket, etc.) decides to abandon their initial purpose - generally human food - they must first study the possible outlets. If possible, these products must be redirected as a priority to a new form of human or animal food. This may involve a transfer to anti-waste brands that market products that have passed their DDM (Minimum Durability Date). 

When this is not possible, these products take on the status of waste. The Anti-Waste Law provides for an obligation for the decision-maker to sort at source and recover their waste. In other words, they must find a solution to separate the organic part from the rest, and ensure that it is revalued in methanization or compost.

The question of packaging then arises when these products are not in bulk: most food products have been packaged in specific materials for reasons of conservation, protection, transport and/or presentation to consumers. This is the case, for example, of drinks in glass bottles, vacuum-packed meats, vegetables in cans or even salty groceries in cardboard/plastic/paper packaging. This packaging is most often non-biodegradable and sometimes contains toxic substances that could contaminate the biogas produced during methanization, making the process ineffective and potentially dangerous for the environment.

There are several solutions for sorting organic matter from packaging. It can be done by hand, although this is a time-consuming and costly option. It can also be done (except for glass) by a deconditioner: a machine that extracts organic matter using different methods. For example, the packaging can be pierced and then pressed to extract its contents more easily. The organic materials obtained and mixed form what are called deconditioning soups. These soups must then be sanitized to reduce any health risk before being able to enter a methanizer, since they often contain SPAN (Animal By-Products, see our dedicated article here ). 

The use of a deconditioner is important in waste management and recycling systems, as it allows the recovery of valuable raw materials, reduces waste and promotes better use of resources. By recovering products without their packaging, the potential for recycling and recovery of waste can be increased, thus contributing to more sustainable resource management and reducing environmental impact.

Methappro configures tailor-made solutions to best help producers of packaged biowaste, from waste recovery to its revaluation in methanization. To find out more, contact us by email: contact@methappro.fr