Feedstock Category: Bio-Circular

Bio-circular (and circular) feedstocks are materials at the beginning of the supply chain considered as a waste / processing residue that are not landfilled or energetically used, but instead reused, further used or recycled in a loop without dropping out of the economy.

“Bio-Circular”

refers to waste and residues of biological origin from agriculture, forestry and related industries including fisheries and aquaculture, as well as the biodegradable fraction of industrial and municipal waste (e.g. UCO, tall oil, food waste, etc.)


Relevance of Waste and Residues

The concept of the Circular Economy – reduce, reuse, recycle – is gaining attention worldwide as it brings many benefits. The use of wastes and residues supports the transition to a renewable and more sustainable economy by enabling the replacement of finite resources such as mineral oils. It can reduce GHG emissions and pollution, as well as the need for landfill sites. In addition, the pressure on agricultural land decreases, as waste and residues do not compete with food or feed crops. For this reason, many EU Member States offer incentives for the use of biofuels produced from wastes and residues under the RED II. In support of this concept, ISCC provides a certification standard for a wide range of wastes and residues such as used cooking oil, forestry residues or mixed plastic waste (circular) that can be converted into other materials.


Handling of Wastes and Residues

The ISCC chain of custody certification of wastes and residues begins at the point of origin, the place where the waste is originally generated. A point of origin can, for example, be a fast-food restaurant that uses cooking oil for deep-frying food. The used cooking oil can be handed on in the supply chain as a waste material for the production of biofuels or bio-based plastics. Under ISCC, points of origin for waste and residue materials need to make sure that the material occurring at their premises is not generated deliberately or in other words, that it is an unavoidable waste or residue.  Also, farms and plantations on which agricultural residues occur have to comply with the ISCC sustainability principles and e.g., adopt best practices by establishing a farm waste management plan and set up waste reduction, reuse and recycling structures the use of landfills or on-site burnings.