Guidance

Aircraft waste: separating recycling and international catering waste

Guidance for the aviation sector on how to separate recyclable waste from international catering waste (ICW).

From:
Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs
Published
18 September 2025

About this guidance

This guidance is to help the aviation sector separate recyclable waste from international catering waste (ICW).

It’s important to prevent cross-contamination, because any items that have contact with ICW cannot be recycled.

You must still comply with the animal by-product regulations concerning the handling, storage, treatment and disposal of ICW.

What is ICW

International catering waste (ICW) is food waste and packaging from transport vehicles that have arrived from outside the UK, Channel Islands and Isle of Man.

ICW is classed as a high-risk category 1 animal by-product (ABP). You must follow rules on handling and disposal to prevent the spread of diseases.

Examples of ICW

ICW includes all food waste, and any items that may have come into contact with food waste including:

  • napkins
  • food packaging like meal boxes or snack wrappers
  • disposable cutlery
  • milk and butter sachets
  • tea or coffee cups

Which flights need to treat food waste as ICW

You must treat food waste as ICW for flights travelling:

  • to Great Britain (England, Scotland and Wales) from any other country (including EU countries)
  • from Great Britain to Northern Ireland

Food waste is classified as domestic catering waste, rather than ICW, when the flight travels either:

  • within Great Britain, Channel Islands and Isle of Man
  • from Northern Ireland to Great Britain
  • from the EU to Northern Ireland

Responsibility for waste compliance

Anyone involved in the managing ICW should follow this guidance to prevent cross-contamination, to ensure legal compliance with the ABP regulations. This includes:

  • airlines
  • aircraft operators – any individual or organisation that authorises the operation of an aircraft, such as the owner, lessee or bailee
  • waste handlers - anyone involved in the collection, transport or disposal of waste within the airport boundary (including aircraft cleaners or ground handling agents)
  • waste contractors – anyone involved in the final collection and disposal of ICW and other airport waste

There are multiple stages in the ICW waste handling process where there is a risk of ICW and recyclable items being mixed together. The guidance should be followed at each stage of the process by any party involved to keep ICW and recyclable items separate.

Notifying APHA of new ICW handling sites

If you are responsible for the waste disposal area you must notify the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) about any new sites where recycling and ICW are collected separately, so they can organise inspections. Email APHA at adviceservicesonehealth@apha.gov.uk.

Reviewing your compliance

 You must conduct periodic checks to make sure you are complying with this guidance. You must keep evidence of these checks for at least 2 years, to show APHA during an inspection.

Inspections by APHA

APHA can inspect compliance with ABP regulations at any time. If APHA find non-compliance, they may instruct you to pause the separate collection of recycling until the issue is resolved.

Collecting and separating waste onboard

You must ensure that ICW and recyclable items are collected in separate bags or boxes, so that recyclable materials are not contaminated by food waste.

You need to check which items you can recycle with your waste contractor.

You must ensure that crew:

  • are aware of the rules on keeping ICW and recyclable items separate
  • place all ICW (including items contaminated with ICW) in designated collection bags or boxes
  • never place ICW and recycling bags inside of each other

Examples of recyclable items

Examples of recyclable items include:

  • plastic bottles
  • drink cans
  • magazines and newspapers
  • clean cardboard packaging
  • unused drinks cups (check if your waste collector can recycle these)

Contaminated recycling 

You must not recycle any items that have been in contact with any animal products. This includes milk, cheese, butter, yogurt, cream and honey, as well as meat or fish.

For example, a sandwich wrapper or cup that has contained tea or coffee must be collected as ICW, not recycling.

If a recycling bag is contaminated with any amount of ICW, the whole bag must be treated as ICW.

Collection bags

The bags used to collect ICW and recyclable materials must be:

  • clearly distinguishable (for example, by using different coloured bags)
  • of suitable thickness to prevent leakage

Recycling bags must:

  • be transparent enough – so that all the contents can be viewed
  • not be overfilled – this makes the contents harder to see

Responsibility for onboard collection

The aircraft operator or direct employer of the crew servicing the flight accepts responsibility for ensuring ICW and recycling are collected separately to prevent cross-contamination.

Handling waste during aircraft turn around

Once removed from the aircraft, the waste should be handed to the waste handler or left in a designated place for collection.

The waste handler must continue to ensure ICW and recyclable items are kept separate by doing all the following:

  • conducting a visual inspection of recycling bags to check the two waste types have not been mixed together
  • transferring the bags from the aircraft to a form of transportation that allows for their continued separation
  • ensuring the vehicle or container for ICW is labelled ‘Category 1 Animal By-Product – for disposal only’

Recycling bags must be treated as ICW if they:

  • appear to be contaminated with any amount of ICW
  • are not transparent – meaning the contents cannot be inspected

If recycling contains ICW

If evidence of contamination is found during the visual inspection you must:

  • treat the container as ICW
  • record and maintain a log of the date and approximate time when the contamination occurred

If ICW and recycling are transported together

If ICW and recycling bags are stored together in transport, you should take measures to prevent cross-contamination. Examples of measures include:

  • inspecting the bags for punctures or defects
  • installing a divider to keep the 2 waste streams separate

Containers used for ICW must comply with the general guidance on handling ICW.

You must collect and dispose of aircraft cabin waste in a timely manner.

Storing waste

If you are responsible for the waste storage area you should provide a suitably sized area designated for the separate storage of ICW and recyclable items.

The waste storage area may either be airside or on the landside of the airport.

Containers and compactors used for ICW must comply with the general guidance on handling ICW.  

You must:

  • clearly label recycling ICW containers so they can easily be distinguished
  • periodically carry out a visual inspection of the recycling bags to check for any evidence of ICW contamination
  • where contamination is found, dispose of all recycling as ICW and maintain a log of when the contamination was found, including date and an approximate time

Transporting waste

ICW must be collected by an APHA-registered ABP transporter.

The transporter’s vehicle must be:

  • clearly labelled ‘Category 1 Animal By-Product – for disposal only’
  • covered and leak-proof

The airport operator or waste handler is responsible for having the required documentation to transport ICW. Read the guidance on handling and disposing of ICW.

All airport waste must be collected and disposed of in accordance with the relevant waste regulations.

Relevant regulations  

Definitions 

  • Animal by-product – animal carcasses, parts of animals, or other materials which come from animals that are not intended for human consumption.
  • Category 1 (CAT 1) animal by-product – animal by-products are divided into 3 categories based on the risks they pose. Category 1 animal by-products are classed as high risk and includes ICW.
  • Cross-contamination – the mixing of ICW with recyclable items so that the waste is jointly considered ICW.

Get help

If you have any questions about this guidance, contact APHA at adviceservicesonehealth@apha.gov.uk.

Updates to this page

Published 18 September 2025

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