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animal waste accounts to some 65-70 million tons of dry matter and is used
as organic fertilizers;
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alcohol and brewing production waste is 10 million tons a year (according to
various sources less than 10 to 25% are processed);
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whey: food industry uses less than half produced whey (850 thousand tons of
2.1 million).
Problems of food and agricultural waste products processing makeup a task
list. First comes waste neutralization according to methods of environmental and
health standards and search for the most cost-effective ways of recycling to get new
products as well as development of comprehensive waste management programs for
the regional agri-food production facilities, taking into account the peculiarities of
economic situation and infrastructure.
Among the main waste processing methods (such as burial and incineration to
recover energy) I would like to highlight the biological ones:
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anaerobic digestion to produce heat and electricity and high-quality organic
fertilizer;
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composting, the result of which is soil improvers obtaining;
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the use of waste as a substrate in biotechnological synthesis to produce high
added value products.
Biotechnological methods of recycling have undoubted advantages over other
types of processing by maximizing the potential waste of resources and deep pro-
cessing, which makes it possible to get new products: fertilizers and animal feed, bio-
logically active substances and bioplastics.
There are many different methods and technologies of biological recycling,
from small mounds of fertilizers near houses to industrial-scale processing of house-
hold waste in special sealed containers. Methods of biological digestion can be divid-
ed into two types: aerobic and anaerobic, although there are mixed types.
In 1999, the Department of Trade and Industry and the Department of Envi-
ronment, Transport and Regional Policy of Great Britain started co-financing the
waste minimization program «Envirowise». Local and regional waste minimization
clubs were established in the country as a part of the program.
The main method of the program is the introduction of improved management
practices in companies. It is made through training, consultations, distribution of spe-
cial guidance and personal counseling in the field. Besides, in companies-participants
of the program specialized workshops are held; free consultations of experts on waste
management are given for small companies (with less than 250 employees).
One of the programs within the framework of the waste management system by
means of biological treatment is the «Green Bin «, the program realized in Toronto,