What does it mean to De-Pack? 

When packaged food products can’t be sold or donated, we help recover what’s still valuable. Our de-packaging technology separates organic content from packaging, so materials can be composted or recycled, not wasted. De-packaging isn’t the solution for all occasions, but it is often the best option for large grocers and food distributers experiencing significant volumes of organics otherwise destined for a landfill or incinerator.  For most smaller businesses and schools, we encourage source separation at the point of generation for a clean organic stream that can either be converted into renewable energy via anaerobic digestion or composted to support soil health.  Agri-Cycle relies on a variety of end uses to recover wasted food, including digestion to energy, composting to soil amendment, and animal feed. 

depackager

The depackager consists of the intake trough (left) and the separator mechanism (right).

Our state-of-the-art de-packaging machine was the first of its kind in the Northeast, and now many of our partner farm-based digesters are also using this technology.  Here’s how it works:  the de-pack is comprised of a network of paddles and screens that work in unison to separate expired or damaged packaged food from its plastic, metal, or cardboard containers. The resulting food waste slurry is then mixed with the cow manure and digested into renewable energy.  This cutting-edge technology makes it possible to recycle expired or spoiled products that otherwise (because of its packaging) might end up in a landfill.  Even better – the packaging material that is captured from the process is also diverted, meaning that everything we collect, we keep out of the landfill.

When possible, leave the De-Pak option for the tough to separate items, and remove the food from it’s packaging and recycle that container.  And it’s always a good reminder that the less packaging we use in the first place results in less packaging that must be managed downstream.  

 

loadingdepackager

A loader is used to move the food waste from the tipping floor into the depackaging machine.