Food-waste reduction is no longer voluntary. The EU now sets binding national targets — and on-site treatment with primary data is how professional kitchens meet them.
By 31 December 2030, EU Member States must reduce per-capita food waste by 30% across retail, restaurants, food services and households — and by 10% in processing and manufacturing — measured against the 2021–2023 average. The revised Waste Framework Directive entered into force on 16 October 2025, and asks Member States to promote technological solutions that prevent food waste and to strengthen food donation.
Around 59 million tonnes of food are wasted in the EU each year (~130 kg per person). Roughly 16% of the food system’s greenhouse-gas emissions come from wasted food, and food sent to landfill is a significant source of methane.
National targets cascade to the operators who generate the waste. Griffon weighs every kilogram at the point of input — primary data, not estimates — so you can prove reduction, not just claim it.
Since 31 December 2023, Article 22 of the Waste Framework Directive requires food waste to be separated at source or collected separately. Griffon handles it where it arises — no shared bins, no mixing.
The hierarchy is clear: donate what is still edible. For what cannot be donated, the University of Zagreb study identifies on-site aerobic treatment (Griffon) as the most desirable option — 16× lower processing footprint than a dehydrator, and ~138× lower than landfill.
On-site aerobic digestion is an established technology deployed in hospitality and institutional kitchens worldwide. Sources: Directive (EU) 2025/1892; European Commission (2025); University of Zagreb, Faculty of Geotechnical Engineering (2022).
Under EU law, catering and kitchen food residues are classified as animal by-products (Category 3) under Regulation (EC) 1069/2009. That classification carries a practical consequence many on-site “composter” buyers do not expect: turning those residues into compost or digestate that may be applied to land is only permitted at a facility approved under the Regulation, running a validated process — not inside a kitchen appliance.
So the output of an on-site composter or dehydrator is, in practice, still removed and handled as waste; it is not a recognised compost for a vegetable garden, and applying immature material to edible crops also engages food-safety duties for the operator. The selling point “use the compost in your garden” runs directly into this rule.
Griffon avoids the entire pathway. It produces no solid output to cure, store, approve or spread — food residues are digested to a liquid that leaves through the existing kitchen drain. There is no animal-by-product compost to manage, and nothing to apply to land.
Sources: Regulation (EC) 1069/2009 and Commission Regulation (EU) 142/2011 (animal by-products); Croatian Pravilnik on animal by-products not intended for human consumption; Regulation (EC) 178/2002 and 852/2004 (food safety). This is general regulatory information, not legal advice; national implementation is confirmed by the competent authority.
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