Pa. Meat Processor Finds Ways To Recycle Or Re-Use All Waste Matter

A Cargill meat processing plant in Hazleton, Pa., has completed a program to recycle plastic, burn unrecyclable plastic to produce energy, and render food waste into other food products, completely avoiding landfills. The 225,000-square-foot plant with 600 employees produces 10 million pounds of beef, pork and ground meat products monthly. In 2012, the plant sent 1,500 tons of waste to local landfills, including plastic, bio-solids, paper and other materials. But after a stepped-up recycling program, a third-party certification company verified the facility's landfill-free status in late March after reviewing documentation and performing a three-day on-site audit.