132 A. N. Tanner and N. Strøm-Andersen
According to the waste pyramid, the dominating use of ABPs is characterised by the lowest part of the pyramid, namely recycling, recovery, energy
and disposal. Today, the majority of by- products end up in the lowest part,
recycled as pet food or feed for animals that do not enter the food chain (e.g.
mink), fertiliser or as energy. The top of the pyramid – prevention and reuse
– is the most preferable from an economic and environmental perspective
(ECA, 2016). The main focus in this chapter is to study how companies in
the meat processing and ABP industry facilitate processes of prevention, reuse
and recycling of by- products to create higher added value for their resource
base (e.g. for human consumption), through process and/or product
innovations.
7.4 The meat processing and ABP sector
The meat processing and ABP sector has experienced a strong consolidation
and internationalisation over the last 10–20 years, which has resulted in an
intertwined network of companies that cuts across national borders. Companies are often connected through interest shares or in supplier–buyer relationships. This is also the case for companies in Denmark and Norway: For
example, DAKA (a Denmark- based rendering company) owns 10% of the
shares in Norsk Protein; Farmfood receives the majority of the Norwegian
poultry ABP (CAT2 material) at their facility in Løgstør in Northern
Denmark. Nevertheless, the industry structure and geography of the two
countries have a huge impact on the types and volumes of ABPs available in
each country, and hence for the basis of input to the industry. In the following, we give a short presentation of the key actors characterising Denmark’s
and Norway’s meat processing and ABP sectors.
7.4.1 Denmark
The meat processing and ABP industry in Denmark is characterised by its
very large animal production, especially regarding pigs (see Table 7.1 for a
comparison of the size of animal production in Denmark and Norway). In
particular, the Danish pig industry is very large compared to Denmark’s size
and counts approximately 3,300 pig farms that together produce 31.9 million
pigs annually (DST table ANI9). Together, the animal production, meat
processing and ABP industry comprise 45% (approximately 85,000 people) of
the total employment in the food industry in Denmark (Landbrug og Fødevarer, 2017). In 2015, the turnover for the four largest co- operatives in the
sector – Danish Crown, Tican, DAT Schaub and DAKA – reached US$10.7
billion (Danish Agriculture & Food Council, 2016). In 2016, Tican became a
privately owned company. Key actors in the Danish meat processing and
ABP industry are slaughterhouses, dedicated by- product companies, interest
organisations, universities and research centres, and more recently, small- and
medium- sized technology developers that have entered the industry.
According to the waste pyramid, the dominating use of ABPs is characterised by the lowest part of the pyramid, namely recycling, recovery, energy
and disposal. Today, the majority of by- products end up in the lowest part,
recycled as pet food or feed for animals that do not enter the food chain (e.g.
mink), fertiliser or as energy. The top of the pyramid – prevention and reuse
– is the most preferable from an economic and environmental perspective
(ECA, 2016). The main focus in this chapter is to study how companies in
the meat processing and ABP industry facilitate processes of prevention, reuse
and recycling of by- products to create higher added value for their resource
base (e.g. for human consumption), through process and/or product
innovations.
7.4 The meat processing and ABP sector
The meat processing and ABP sector has experienced a strong consolidation
and internationalisation over the last 10–20 years, which has resulted in an
intertwined network of companies that cuts across national borders. Companies are often connected through interest shares or in supplier–buyer relationships. This is also the case for companies in Denmark and Norway: For
example, DAKA (a Denmark- based rendering company) owns 10% of the
shares in Norsk Protein; Farmfood receives the majority of the Norwegian
poultry ABP (CAT2 material) at their facility in Løgstør in Northern
Denmark. Nevertheless, the industry structure and geography of the two
countries have a huge impact on the types and volumes of ABPs available in
each country, and hence for the basis of input to the industry. In the following, we give a short presentation of the key actors characterising Denmark’s
and Norway’s meat processing and ABP sectors.
7.4.1 Denmark
The meat processing and ABP industry in Denmark is characterised by its
very large animal production, especially regarding pigs (see Table 7.1 for a
comparison of the size of animal production in Denmark and Norway). In
particular, the Danish pig industry is very large compared to Denmark’s size
and counts approximately 3,300 pig farms that together produce 31.9 million
pigs annually (DST table ANI9). Together, the animal production, meat
processing and ABP industry comprise 45% (approximately 85,000 people) of
the total employment in the food industry in Denmark (Landbrug og Fødevarer, 2017). In 2015, the turnover for the four largest co- operatives in the
sector – Danish Crown, Tican, DAT Schaub and DAKA – reached US$10.7
billion (Danish Agriculture & Food Council, 2016). In 2016, Tican became a
privately owned company. Key actors in the Danish meat processing and
ABP industry are slaughterhouses, dedicated by- product companies, interest
organisations, universities and research centres, and more recently, small- and
medium- sized technology developers that have entered the industry.