Are you complying with the new legislation?
If you are a food business in Scotland - big or small - you could be liable for fines of up to £10,000 if you don’t comply with the new Waste (Scotland) Regulations which came into effect on 1st January 2016.
You are considered to be a food business if you process, distribute or sell food, and that includes independent pubs, restaurants and hotels.
In addition to potential fines, your waste is unlikely to be collected if food waste is not properly segregated and ends up contaminating other waste. This will lead to extra costs if special one off collections have to then be organised.
Why recycle as a business or organisation?
- It’s the law. If you don’t comply, you can be liable for a fine of up to £10,000
- From 1 January 2016, you must recycle food waste if your business prepares and/or sells food and produces 5kg or more of food waste (unless excluded by rural locations)
- Recycling reduces the need for landfill and the mining of raw materials
- Recycling helps prevent the production of environmentally damaging gases (such as methane) produced when biodegradable waste is sent to landfill
Are you exempt from separating food waste?
You are exempt from separating food waste only if you;
- Don’t prepare or sell food, or
- Qualify as a rural location (check using the rural postcode finder tool), or
- Produce less than 5kg of food waste per week
Get it right
Separate materials correctly in bins clearly labelled to collect food waste, recyclables and non-recyclables.
What happens to food waste?
Visit our 'what happens to your food waste' page for more information.