Waste and by-products

Biowaste, garden waste and food-industry by-products: biomass from waste streams.

What this family covers

  • Biowaste: food waste from households, catering and retail.
  • Garden waste: grass cuttings, prunings and leaves from gardens and green spaces.
  • Food-industry by-products: pomace, pulp, brewers’ grains, oilseed cakes, cereal by-products.
  • Waste wood: see the forest biomass page.

Uses

Composting, anaerobic digestion and, for some dry streams, energy recovery. In the European Union, the Waste Framework Directive has required since 31 December 2023 that biowaste is either separated or recycled at source: Directive (EU) 2018/851.

Reference bodies

France

Belgium

Germany

Spain

  • IDAEPublic agencySpanish Institute for Energy Diversification and Saving.
  • MITECOGovernmentSpanish Ministry for the Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge.
  • CIEMATResearch and expertiseSpanish public research centre for energy, environment and technology.
  • APPA RenovablesTrade organisationSpanish association of renewable energy companies.

Italy

United Kingdom

Europe

Latest news

BelgiumSource published on

Flanders: number of biomethane sites doubles to 12, says Biogas-E

According to the annual report of the Flemish platform Biogas-E, 133 biogas plants produced 691 GWh of electricity and 811 GWh of heat in 2025, and biomethane output reached 186 GWh.

Agricultural biomassWaste and by-productsStatistics and resourcesSource : Biogas-E
EuropeSource published on

Bioeconomy: 272 projects compete for €170.7m in the 2026 CBE JU call

The 2026 call of the Circular Bio-based Europe partnership received 272 proposals requesting €1.65bn against €170.7m available; results are expected in January 2027.

Agricultural biomassWaste and by-productsForest biomassFunding and callsSource : CBE JU — Circular Bio-based Europe Joint Undertaking

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