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The Food and Drink Federation (FDF) has called for greater investment in anaerobic digestion and composting facilities to help improve recovery rates for packaging waste.

A survey of FDF members, published on Friday (18 July), found that 88% of the 94,900 tonnes of packaging waste generated was recycled or recovered, for example by using it in animal feed.

The survey showed FDF members generated 834,602 tonnes of food and packaging waste, at 236 production sites across the country, and four-fifths were recycled or recovered.

Callton Young, FDF director of sustainability and competitiveness, hoped the survey results would "send a message to the waste industry to invest more in anaerobic digestion and composting capacity".

Environment minister Phil Woolas said the survey would help industry and local planners "understand where it's worthwhile to provide such facilities".

In October, the FDF set a target of zero food and packaging waste to be sent to landfill by 2015.