28 November 2016 Guide

Food waste in the NHS

This guide aims to help waste management companies understand how best to meet the food waste collection service requirements of NHS hospitals.

Key points
  • There are around 2,300 hospitals in the UK
  • Around 0.5 kilograms of food waste is produced per patient per week
  • Most food waste is currently either disposed of mixed as part of the general waste stream, or macerated for disposal to sewer
  • There are a number of drivers encouraging the NHS to separate food waste for treatment

Overview

Research by WRAP indicates that there is a significant opportunity for waste management contractors to provide food waste collection services to the NHS.

This guide has been developed based on interviews with NHS hospitals with food waste collections and their waste management companies.

It aims to help waste management companies understand how best to meet the food waste collection service requirements of NHS hospitals.

Contents

1.0 Introduction
2.0 Benefits of food waste collection from the NHS
3.0 The context of food waste within the NHS
4.0 Provision and management of food within hospitals
5.0 Collection operations
6.0 Communications
7.0 Data provision
8.0 Approaches to charging and NHS budget considerations
9.0 Contract procurement
10.0 Further information
Appendix A. Methodology employed
Appendix B. Case studies
Appendix C. Key audiences, messages and methods for communications
Appendix D. Formal procurement

Case studies

WRAP has also published a series of case studies on food collection from NHS organisations:

Barts Health NHS Trust >>
Cardiff and Vale University Health Board >>
Central Manchester University Hospitals NHS Trust >>
NHS Ayrshire and Arran >>
Somerset Partnership NHS Foundation Trust >>

Related

To find information related to this guide, please use the following links:

Commercial Food Waste Collection >>

Download files

  • WRAP-NHS_Food_Waste_Collection_Guide.pdf

    PDF, 1.47 MB

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