Environmental Management Administration

The goal of diversified reuse of food waste is to reduce the amount of food waste and transform it into valuable resources such as animal feed, fertilizer and bio-energy through proper recycling and processing. Therefore, effective food waste recycling not only contributes to environmental protection but also helps achieve Sustainable Development Goal 12—Sustainable Production and Consumption.

Food loss and waste (FLW) reduction, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has prioritized addressing food waste. The primary task is source reduction, such as minimizing food waste or donating surplus food to food banks for redistribution, thereby preventing food loss and waste. The second priority is reusing inedible or uneaten food scraps or waste, such as animal feed. The third priority is utilizing anaerobic digestion to recover bio-energy or composting to fertilizer. Finally, landfilling or incineration is a last resort. The FAO's policy objective is to continuously promote the diversified reuse of food waste.

Food waste recycling is an important issue in organic resource recycling. Since 2003, the administration has actively provided subsidies to local governments to promote food waste recycling, including education, disposal equipment procurement, and construction of food waste recycling plants and facilities. In October 2025, an outbreak of African Swine Fever (ASF) occurred. In response to the ASF prevention considerations, the administration launched a nationwide food waste emergency response plan to ensure stable disposal of food waste and environmental hygiene. With the policy transformation of reusing food waste for pig farming from 2026, household food waste has been banned reusing for pig farming, until 2027, when food waste will be completely prohibited from being used for pig farming, the priority of food waste disposal was reused, supplemented by incineration and landfill. At the same time, four supporting measures were launched: "Establishing a real-time monitoring system for pig farms cooking", "Strengthening the management of incineration plants", "Increasing the capacity of recycling facilities", and "Promoting food conservation and environmental education" to strengthen the management and disposal planning of food waste reuse. The administration will also continue to subsidize county and city governments to set up food waste recycling facilities to increase the amount of food waste composted and the quality of the finished products. At the same time, in response to the goal of net zero emissions by 2050, also promoting the diversified reuse of food waste in a low-carbon way, such as food waste digestion for bio-energy and black soldier fly treatment, to implement a circular economy.

In 2025, the total amount of household food waste recycled nationwide reached approximately 522,000 tons. The disposal methods were as follows: approximately 37.7% was used for animal feed (e.g., pig farming), 44.0% for fertilizer (e.g., high-efficiency composting and traditional composting), 10.9% for bio-energy generation, 2.9% for other uses (e.g., raising black soldier fly larvae and chickens/ducks), 4.1% was incinerated, and 0.4% was landfilled. (Due to the outbreak of ASF in October 2025, the reuse of food waste for pig farming was completely prohibited from October 23 to December 31, 2025. Some food waste was properly disposed of through incineration or landfill.)

To meet the 2050 net-zero emissions target, the Ministry of Environment is committed to reducing waste generation at its source and improving the effective recycling rate of resources. It has incorporated food waste recycling rates into the performance evaluation of local government food waste management programs. This policy aims to encourage the public to cherish food, reduce food waste, prevent leftovers from becoming food waste, lower the amount of food waste generated, and transform food waste into valuable resources. To achieve this goal, local governments are actively conducting public awareness campaigns, encouraging the public to drain excess water from food waste to reduce its weight, and promoting various ways to reuse food waste, thereby achieving the recycling of food waste.

In recent years, the amount of household food waste recycled has been declining year by year, from approximately 600,000 tons in 2018 to approximately 522,000 tons in 2025. At the same time, the proportion of household food waste used for composting and energy recovery has increased from approximately 40% in 2018 to approximately 55% in 2025, showing an upward trend in recycling rates.

Currently, the administration is promoting the diverse reuse of food waste, which include:

1. Animal feed: (to be completely banned for pig farming starting in 2027): Cooked food waste reused for direct animal feeding must undergo high-temperature steaming with a core temperature of 90 degrees Celsius or higher, continuous stirring and steaming for at least one hour, and be equipped with temperature monitoring and video recording systems. It must also meet regulations as ordained by the "Animal Husbandry Act," "Act on the Prevention and Control of Infectious Animal Diseases," and other environmental protection laws to adhere to the Ministry of Agriculture's anti-epidemic measures and reduce food loss and waste. The Ministry of Environment will also continue to cooperate with the Ministry of Agriculture to promote policies using food waste as feed.
2. Fertilizer: The administration continuously assists food waste composting plants of local governments in enhancing their capacities, engaging experts and scholars to provide professional suggestions on-site for future facility and equipment operation. The administration also guides local governments in obtaining fertilization registration certification to ensure the quality of compost products, reinforce quality control mechanisms, ensure soil safety after application, and expand distribution channels for compost products, thus realizing the goal of recycling.
3. Energy generation: When food waste is processed by anaerobic digestion, methane is produced, which can be converted into biomass energy after combustion and power generation. Biomass power plants can help to reduce dependence on traditional energy sources.
4. Others: Animals like black soldier flies, earthworms, and poultry, or other technological feasible reuse methods.

Since February 2019, the Ministry of Environment has invested NT$1.3 billion in subsidies in various regions for construction of food waste treatment facilities. To date, a total of 2 biomass energy plants, 11 black soldier fly larvae facilities, and 14 high-efficiency composting facilities have been completed. In addition, 45 previously established traditional composting sites have been improved with professional suggestions provided by experts and scholars to improve the quality of the products after compost. Fertilizer can be made available to the public for free or exchanged for recycled items. In addition, after local governments obtain the fertilizer registration certificate, the finished compost products can be sold to increase their annual income.

The administration will promote the reduction and recycling of food waste. The amount of food waste recycled decreased from 595,000 tons in 2018 to 522,000 tons in 2025. Of this, 229,000 tons were composted (44.0%), 57,000 tons were used for bio-energy (10.9%), 197,000 tons were used for pig farming (37.7%), and others such as black soldier fly farming (15,000 tons, 2.9%), incineration and landfill (24,000 tons, 4.5%). In the future, we will continue to promote the use of food waste for fertilizer, anaerobic digestion for power generation, black soldier fly farming and cooperate with the Ministry of Agriculture to promote the use of food waste for animal feed.