International Comparative Study on Dilemmatic Structure and Harmonizing Policies of the Food Recycling and the Food Safety

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The food waste recycling had been improved by the introduction of the Recycling Law in Germany as a pioneer country of recycling. Through the research it was observed that the formation of the institutional framework for recycling had promoted utilization of biomass resources and the recycling business of food waste into feed had been well growing.This study made it clear that after the BSE crisis and the foot-and-mouth disease problem the flow of food waste and animal byproducts had dynamically changed. Animal byproducts were very strictly controlled for the food safety and the utilization meat-bone-meal to feed was prohibited by the EU-directive and they had to be incinerated. It was also prohibited to feed swill and other food wastes containing animal protein on livestock. But the possibility to utilize these food wastes as an energy source was soon found and now the wastes go to mainly biogas plants as fermentation stuff. To promote renewable energy the number of biogas plant has been rapidly increasing and the demand for efficient fermentation stuff had greatly expanded.In this study this change was interpreted using the concept of cascade of biomass utilization and biomass refinery.This change of biomass utilization can be recognized as the result of harmonizing the promoting recycling with the demand for the food safety. The EU has formed the category model of animal byproduct utilization. In this model animal byproducts and food waste including animal protein were categorized by risk evaluation and risk analysis and the allowed recycling way was determined according to these categories. Moreover the energy policy to promote renewable energy can open a new gate for the food waste recycling. By this policy the economic value of food wastes has not much decreased even if the recycling went to the lower stage of biomass utilization.