Image
Reducing waste material in a pig slaughterhouse
Published on 20 May 2020
Finland
This is the good practice's implementation level. It can be national, regional or local.
About this good practice
Atria is one of the leading meats and food companies in the Nordic countries, Russia and Estonia. The company is more than 110 years old. Atria Finland develops, manufactures and markets fresh meat and other foodstuffs and provides services related to them.
Atria Group implements a food wastage prevention in its Seinajoki slaughterhouse plant (2,000 staffs) through a strategic project. As a part of the project, indicators have been created to monitor total wastage, specific wastage, food product wastage, reuse and value-related wastage. The indicators are monitored in the corporative level and the project aims to create a model for continuous improvement.
Atria has identified wastage factors as follows: the quality of raw materials, the calibration of production processes and reasons related to people. Reasons related to people include how carefully employees handle raw materials, for example. Reducing wastage begins with everyone seeking to minimize wastage in their work in a smart, natural way. Calibrating production processes is a complex project, as the entire production line must be considered when selecting the measures. In other words, one must be aware of how each measure affects production. The slogan of the project is: Wastage is unnecessary!
Atria Group implements a food wastage prevention in its Seinajoki slaughterhouse plant (2,000 staffs) through a strategic project. As a part of the project, indicators have been created to monitor total wastage, specific wastage, food product wastage, reuse and value-related wastage. The indicators are monitored in the corporative level and the project aims to create a model for continuous improvement.
Atria has identified wastage factors as follows: the quality of raw materials, the calibration of production processes and reasons related to people. Reasons related to people include how carefully employees handle raw materials, for example. Reducing wastage begins with everyone seeking to minimize wastage in their work in a smart, natural way. Calibrating production processes is a complex project, as the entire production line must be considered when selecting the measures. In other words, one must be aware of how each measure affects production. The slogan of the project is: Wastage is unnecessary!
Resources needed
Capital, investments, new technologies, training, management
As a private sector innovation, exact figures for budgeting development and implementation costs are not available. The costs also depend on the scale and style of how the application would be modified for transfer.
As a private sector innovation, exact figures for budgeting development and implementation costs are not available. The costs also depend on the scale and style of how the application would be modified for transfer.
Evidence of success
Over the past few years, ATRIA worked to reduce production waste. The results have been good and have largely been based on creating smarter ways of working. New technologies and investments are needed as well, and ATRIA is also investing from this perspective. The total value of the raw materials purchased annually by Atria Finland is 800 million euros. If wastage is reduced by 1 %, the savings will be 8 million euros per year.
Potential for learning or transfer
This case study has a strong potential for learning in other regions, both in private and public sectors. Some ECOWASTE4FOOD project partners are willing to support similar good practices through support to resource-efficient innovation and training in the food industries.
The solution has transfer potential to public sector as models for systematic food preparing methods, measurement, improved estimation of the materials needed and the training of personnel could be developed also for food services of the public sector in one or several municipalities, a region or regions or even nationally.
The solution has transfer potential to public sector as models for systematic food preparing methods, measurement, improved estimation of the materials needed and the training of personnel could be developed also for food services of the public sector in one or several municipalities, a region or regions or even nationally.
Further information
Website
Good practice owner
You can contact the good practice owner below for more detailed information.
Organisation
Regional Council of South Ostrobothnia
Finland
Länsi-Suomi
Contact
Manager of International Affairs