Up until the 1990's, prior to the BSE crisis, rejected food stuffs and confectionery were typically processed for use as animal feeds.

The effects of the restrictions resulted in the increase and availability of waste organic matter. Organic matter was identified as a rich source of methane gas, which when land-filled into specially prepared sites, could be tapped off and used as fuel   to   generate   electricity   in
Atritor Turbo Separator System for Supermarket Waste
turbine power generators. Other avenues of disposal were Composters and Renderering Companies. In all cases the waste needs to be removed from its packaging before being processed. Shredding or crushing was not an efficient solution due  to  contamination  of  the  recovered  product  with


Atritor Turbo Separator System
packaging and a high percentage of product remained with the separated packaging. This resulted in the product requiring sifting further before being able to move on to the following process. The poor efficiencies achieved resulted in higher recovered packaging weights which increased landfill or recycling costs. The only other option was to empty the packaging by hand which is slow, costly and has health and safety  implications.
The Turbo Separator is designed to separate a wide range of packaging from its contents with up to 99% efficiency. The Turbo Separator separates the products using centrifugal force, air flow and mechanical action.  The  paddles  inflict  the  minimal  amount   of   damage   to   the
packaging to achieve maximum separation efficiency. The Turbo Separator is fitted with a variable speed drive to enhance efficiency. The system is capable of being mounted either in doors or out doors.

Atritor supply the complete system including in-feed conveyor, empty packaging conveyor, and recovered material conveyor or pumping system. The Turbo Separator is mounted on an access platform and includes controls housed in a floor mounted panel.

Examples of Supermarket Waste products presently separated by a Turbo Separator include:


Dessert Pots Prior to Separation


Dessert Pots after Separation
  • Packaged vegetables in plastic wrappers


  • Bread in plastic wrappers


  • Pet food pouches


  • Sandwich packets


  • Sachets of sugar, salt etc


  • Ready meals from chillier cabinet


  • Cereal boxes
  • Soft drinks/milk in cartons or plastic bottles up to 2 litre capacity


  • Biscuits, crackers etc


  • Sachets of coffee, chocolate drinks etc


  • Hard Cheeses


  • Yoghurt pots, dessert pots etc


  • Canned pet food


  • Canned vegetables


  • Canned fruit


  • Canned drinks
  • Aerosol cans


  • Powdered paper bagged products


  • Flavour cubes in boxes


  • Meats in plastic packaging


  • Gravy in hard plastic pots


  • Chickens in plastic packaging


  • Tinned meats


  • Tea bags in boxes, foil or loose


  • Snack Foods