Denali Introduces 1st-Ever Mobile Food Recycling Unit
Denali, the nation’s largest organic recycler, has rolled out the first-ever mobile de-packaging solution created to enable companies to respond immediately to diverting unsalable food from landfills in critical retail operation situations. With millions of tons of surplus food wasted annually because of spoilage from logistical disruptions, recalls or natural disasters, the solution can be deployed within 24 hours to on-site locations, including grocery stores and food distributors, without the need for existing infrastructure.
The company said that the solution can quickly manage large-scale unconsumable food, diverting it from landfills, where food accounts for about 24% of the content and generates methane emissions 28 times more potent than carbon dioxide, according to the U.S. EPA.
[RELATED: U.S. Supermarkets Not Addressing Meat and Dairy Emissions]
ReFED’s 2023 Food Waste Monitor found that the United States alone generates 73.9 million tons of surplus food annually; in 2023, 16.3% of this surplus was due to spoilage, food safety issues, or mistakes and malfunctions caused by power outages, equipment issues, deterioration and other factors.
“When it comes to unexpected disruptions or natural disasters resulting in unsalable food, it’s important to act quickly and efficiently,” noted Eric Speiser, chief revenue officer at Russellville, Ark.-based Denali. “Our mobile de-packaging unit can be deployed within a day or less and can be up and running within an hour to process food waste into a clean organic stream that can be repurposed into usable products rather than filling landfills.”
Denali’s mobile de-packaging unit offers the power of its flagship de-packaging machines to quickly separate food from its packaging and then turn it into such sustainable products as compost, natural fertilizer, animal feed and renewable energy. Mounted on a trailer and capable of operating independently of existing infrastructure, including electricity, the unit can be easily set up at locations facing imminent unsalable food, including retailers, grocers, food manufacturers and distribution centers.
Denali collaborated with Ecoverse, an Avon, Ohio-based provider of environmental processing equipment, on the design of the mobile de-packaging unit.
“Ecoverse and Tiger Depack are excited to be working together with Denali to help fulfill their food waste management goals by de-packaging, separating and diverting massive amounts of food waste from landfills,” said Ecoverse President Hugh Fagan. “Our Tiger Depack System allows Denali to capture, repurpose and recycle valuable materials for the betterment of the environment through compost, anaerobic digestion and animal feed.”
“Innovation is in our DNA at Denali, and our mobile de-packaging machine expands our capabilities to support partners in their time of need to repurpose unsalable food,” added Speiser. “We partnered with our manufacturer to refine the unit’s design, elevating its efficiencies across maintenance, cleaning and freeze-proofing it to build a unit that is agile, easy to set up and effective.”
Denali currently provides de-packaging services to thousands of grocers, food manufacturers, distributors and municipalities nationwide by collecting their unsalable food and recycling it into valuable products. Last year, for instance, Walmart became the first retailer to team up with Denali to introduce depackaging services to help improve the food waste recycling process at more than 1,000 Walmart and Sam’s Club locations across the country. Walmart has also begun selling ReCirculate, a premium compost product made from unconsumed food sourced from thousands of grocery stores by Denali.
Each week, approximately 255 million customers and members visit Walmart’s more than 10,500 stores and numerous e-commerce websites in 19 countries. With fiscal year 2024 revenue of $648 billion, the retailer employs approximately 2.1 million associates worldwide. Bentonville, Ark.-based Walmart U.S. is No. 1 on Progressive Grocer’s 2024 list of the top food and consumables retailers in North America. PG also named the company one of its Retailers of the Century.
