Stockholm sees rise in food waste recycling, following new national law

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A new law means that all Swedes are now legally required to recycle their food waste.

Many cities across the country have been doing so for decades, but it means change in the capital, Stockholm.

So, the question is: Has this new law made any difference?

Stockholm resident Fabian Säll takes care to recycle his potato peel when he’s preparing a meal. He’s a fan of a new Swedish law that requires everyone to recycle their food waste.

“I think it’s a good thing, actually, for keeping people accountable for the food that they throw away,” he says.

“If you make a law out of it, you can make people think a bit differently about how much food they waste.”

Biokraft, one of two companies responsible for recycling food waste in the Stockholm area, has reported a roughly 20 percent increase in total food waste collected in comparison to the same period (January to March) last year.

But there are challenges in processing it, especially as a chunk of the material they receive is not actually food waste.

Chasib Hamid, a recycling protection manager at Biokraft, says about 30 percent of supposed food waste they receive is actually other garbage that can’t be recycled.

The company processes the waste into biogas and fertilizer that’s then sent to bus depots and local farmers. They also produce liquefied biofuel, which is sold overseas.

With the help of this recycled biofuel, Stockholm converted all its buses to run on renewable fuels in 2018, according to SL, the organization that manages all public transportation in Stockholm County.

But food waste recycling remains a challenge for Stockholm; about 35 percent of food leftovers still go to waste without being recycled.

Each Swede, on average, generates about 120 kg of food waste annually, according to Stockholm Vatten och Avfall, which oversees the city’s waste management.

Another challenge is that more than 50 percent of Stockholm’s food waste now comes not from households, but from restaurants and other food businesses.

This article was provided by The Associated Press. 

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[Stockholm resident Fabian Säll peeling potatoes]

[Potato skins being thrown into ‘food waste’ bag]

Fabian Säll (interview): “I think it’s a good thing, actually, for keeping people accountable for the food that they throw away. And then also, maybe, if you make a law out of it, you can make people think a bit differently about how much food they waste. So, I think it’s a good thing.”

[Säll entering a garbage disposal room]

[Säll throwing food waste into food waste bin]

[Sign, reading (Swedish): “Food Waste”]

Stina Hedström (interview): “As of the first of January, this year, 2024, it became mandatory for the whole country to sort out the food waste and in some regions in Sweden it has been mandatory for decades to sort out the food waste, but now, it’s also here in Stockholm. Although we have not reached the goal yet, we’re heading towards it.”

[Tractor going into building where food waste is collected]

[Sign, reading: “Biokraft”]

[Tractor carrying food waste]

[Food waste being dumped into the mixer]

[Food waste being mixed with water]

[Chasib Hamid, recycling protection manager, Biokraft, checking machine that sorts garbage from food waste]

[Waste that cannot be recycled is being taken away]

Chasib Hamid (interview): “If we talk about the process of food waste here at the site, it’s about… around 30 percent is the waste of the food waste. So, that’s still a high percentage.”

[Tanks that heat food waste and convert it into biogas]

[Tank that heats food waste to 70 degrees]

Oerjan Bohinen (interview): “We have some bacteria that is breaking down the waste and releasing the biogases from it.”

[Site that contains biogases]

[Machine that liquifies biogas]

[Container where all liquified biofuel is stored]

Stina Hedström (interview): “So, if you sort out the food waste, it can be biogas and bio-fertilizer, and these products will help us reduce CO2 emissions and other greenhouse gases. And by using bio-fertilizer, for example, we don’t have to use finite resources, such as phosphorus.”

[Bohinen coming out from the fertilizer storage area]

[Bohinen holding fertilizer made from food waste]

Oerjan Bohinen (interview): “Compressed biofuel, some of it is just sent to our little gas station that is just behind me here, where all the trucks that provide us with food waste every day, they come and fuel. And a lot of other compressed gas is sent around to gas stations here locally in the Stockholm area.”

[Car being refueled with biofuel produced at the plant]

Stina Hedström (interview): “The picture of food waste in Sweden has changed in recent times. It’s no longer evident that the largest amount of food waste comes from households. Before it was two-thirds of all the food waste, but now, it’s only half of the food waste that comes from households, and the rest comes from restaurants and the food industry and so on.”

[Bus running on biofuel in Stockholm]

[Sign, reading (Swedish): “Biodiesel Bus”]

[Biodiesel bus driving away]

[People eating outside restaurants]

[People in Stockholm]

This script was provided by The Associated Press.

The related lesson for this video will be published next Wednesday.