ReFood UK

What ReFood UK does

ReFood UK is a specialist food waste recycling and collection company that operates a vertically integrated network of three purpose-built anaerobic digestion facilities (Doncaster opened 2011, Widnes opened 2014, Dagenham opened 2017) serving business and public-sector customers across the UK and Republic of Ireland. The company collects unavoidable food waste from manufacturers, retailers, hospitality operators, NHS trusts, local authorities, schools, and small businesses, then processes it through an eight-stage anaerobic digestion pipeline — intake and checks, depackaging, pasteurisation, mixing, sealed-tank digestion, biogas capture (for renewable electricity or upgraded biomethane injected into the national gas grid), and digestate conversion to PAS110-certified ReGrow biofertiliser. With 480,000 tonnes of annual processing capacity, ReFood ranks as the second-largest dedicated food waste processor in the UK, generating 48 million kWh of energy and displacing 220,800 tonnes of CO2 per year.

The company's technology stack centres on biological and mechanical process engineering rather than software: full ABP Category 2/3 licensing, depackaging systems that separate packaging from organic material at intake, clean bin swap service that eliminates on-site hygiene burden, and a full traceability system with audited chain of custody from collection through to energy generation and fertiliser production. Sister-company relationships with SARVAL (rendering into pet food ingredients and SAF/biofuel feedstock) and Nortech Foods (heat offtake at Doncaster) create closed-loop industrial synergies within the SARIA group, Europe's leading food waste recycler.

ReFood runs a sales-led, enterprise field sales go-to-market with named regional sales managers (Maria L'Ala) and a customer service team, targeting large multi-site operators through site assessments, trial services, and turnkey implementations. Pricing is quote-based, billed monthly or on a hybrid pay-as-you-go basis with no bin rental, duty of care, bin cleaning, or overweight fees; a 20% first-month discount is offered to small businesses. Revenue streams are diversified across subscription collection fees (SMB and enterprise), usage-based bulk and tanker processing fees for large manufacturers, energy sales to the grid, biomethane gas grid injection, and transaction-fee biofertiliser sales. The company holds ISO 9001, ISO 14001 (in progress), PAS110, SafeContractor, and EcoVadis certifications, and reports named enterprise customers including NHS, Iceland, The Savoy Hotel, Cranswick Country Foods, QHotel Collection, Rudding Park, and Yorkshire Wildlife Park. ReFood is wholly owned by SARIA and operates as part of a broader European food waste recycling network with parent heritage dating to 1926.

Name

ReFood UK

Legal name

ReFood

Website

https://refood.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2011

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

ReFood UK is a food waste collection and recycling company that operates three anaerobic digestion facilities serving manufacturers, retailers, hospitality operators, NHS trusts, local authorities, and schools across the UK and Republic of Ireland.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Waste Management & Recycling Services

NAICS

Waste Collection (5621), Waste Collection (56211), Materials Recovery Facilities (56292), Waste Treatment and Disposal (5622)

SIC

Refuse Systems (4953), Sanitary Services (4950)

akta.pro primary industry

Food Waste Reduction & Diversion Services (Donation, Animal Feed, Source Reduction Programs) (EUAIAEAH)

akta.pro secondary industries

Commercial Food Waste Programs & On-Site Solutions (Cafeterias, Grocers, Hospitality) (BPALAEAE), Organic Waste Transfer & Pre-processing (Depackaging, Grinding, Contaminant Removal) (EUAIAEAB)

Keywords

• Food waste recycling
• Anaerobic digestion
• Commercial waste collection
• Renewable energy generation
• Biofertiliser production

Headquarters

HQ city

Doncaster

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Supply Chain, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Food Waste Collection Services: Recurring collection service for food waste from businesses across all sectors. Services include scheduled bin collections, clean bin swaps, bag collections, and bulk collections. Revenue is generated through regular collection fees based on volume, frequency, and container requirements.
2. Bulk Food Waste Processing: Large-scale food production waste management for manufacturers and processors. Includes palletised collections, dolavs, bulk containers, trailers, and tanker services for liquid or high-volume waste. Revenue based on tonnage processed.
3. ReGrow Biofertiliser Sales: Sale of PAS110-certified biofertiliser produced from anaerobic digestion process to farmers and agricultural businesses. Supports circular economy by returning nutrients to farmland.
4. Renewable Energy Generation: Biogas generated from anaerobic digestion is converted to renewable electricity or upgraded to biomethane for injection into the national gas grid, generating revenue from energy sales.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

ReFood UK provides scheduled food waste collection and recycling services to businesses across the UK and Republic of Ireland, processing the collected waste through its three purpose-built anaerobic digestion facilities (Doncaster, Widnes, Dagenham) into renewable energy (electricity or biomethane injected into the national gas grid) and PAS110-certified ReGrow biofertiliser. The end-to-end offering covers scheduled bin/bag/caddy/dolav/bulk-tanker collections, depackaging, clean bin swaps, full traceability under Animal By-Products regulations, and tailored turnkey solutions for sites with space or volume constraints.

Product overview

ReFood UK is a food waste collection and recycling business operating a network of three Anaerobic Digestion facilities (Doncaster, Widnes, Dagenham). The core offering is food waste collection services available to businesses of all sizes, from small independent cafes to large-scale manufacturers and public sector organisations. The service portfolio includes Food Waste Collection Services and ReFood Direct (tailored solutions for space-constrained sites) as the primary collection offerings, supplemented by Bulk Food Waste Collection for large producers, Turnkey Solutions for complete system setup, and a Trial Service for businesses evaluating the service. Key products include ReGrow Biofertiliser (PAS110-certified agricultural product from processed food waste) and a Food Waste Impact Calculator for estimating environmental benefits. The Clean Bin Swap Service provides sanitised bin exchange at collection. The Anaerobic Digestion Process is the underlying technology converting collected food waste into renewable energy (biogas/biomethane) and nutrient-rich fertiliser. All services operate under Animal By-Products regulations with full traceability.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• ReGrow Biofertiliser: ReGrow is the high-quality, nutrient-rich biofertiliser created through ReFood's anaerobic digestion process. This sustainable product completes the circular economy model by returning nutrients from food waste back to farmland.

Products and services

• Food Waste Collection Services Dedicated food waste collection service for businesses of every size, from single-site independent cafes to large-scale manufacturing, retail, and public sector operations. Provides scheduled collections across multiple container formats (bags, caddies, wheelie bins, dolavs, palletised loads, bulk standing trailers, tanker services) with flexible frequency adjustments. Includes the Clean Bin Swap Service replacing collected bins with freshly sanitised units at every collection.
• ReFood Direct (Tailored Food Waste Services) Tailored food waste services designed for businesses with limited space and specialised operating environments, including 240-litre bins with clean bin swap, 23-litre caddies for smaller areas, and bag collections for tight spaces. Scaled for thousands of businesses operating in space-constrained or hard-to-fit environments where standard wheelie-bin solutions are not appropriate.
• Bulk Food Waste Collection Services Large-scale food production waste management service for food manufacturers, processors, and large-scale producers. Includes palletised collections, dolavs, bulk containers, trailers, and tanker services with scheduled or flexible call-off arrangements. Specialist depackaging systems efficiently separate food from packaging during processing, reducing the need for store teams to separate food from packaging on-site. Tailored to Category 3 Animal By-Product compliance and traceability requirements.
• Turnkey Solutions Complete setup service for food waste recycling systems including site assessment, container supply, collection schedule arrangement, and regulatory compliance setup. One-stop solution where ReFood coordinates end-to-end implementation for organisations transitioning from existing arrangements or starting new food waste separation programmes.
• ReGrow Biofertiliser High-quality, nutrient-rich biofertiliser produced through ReFood's anaerobic digestion process. PAS110-certified product containing nitrogen, phosphate, potassium, magnesium, sulphur, and trace elements that returns nutrients from food waste back to farmland, supporting soil health and crop performance. Sold to farmers and agricultural businesses as a standalone agricultural product.

Quantifiable outcome

• 48 million kWh of energy generated annually
• +7 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles6 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• OliominorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 17 March 2026Partnership with Olio as part of Dolce Schools Catering's sustainability and food waste reduction strategy. Olio redistributes surplus meals to local communities through its volunteer app network, while ReFood collects unavoidable food waste for anaerobic digestion to generate renewable energy.
• Dolce Schools CateringcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 17 March 2026Dolce Schools Catering partnership for food waste collection across 650 schools serving 130,000 meals daily. ReFood collects unavoidable food waste for anaerobic digestion. Hawarden High School in Flintshire is among the first schools to implement the initiative.
• Nortech FoodscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSister company and Doncaster-based producer of animal and vegetable oils and fats. Heat generated on site at Doncaster facility is supplied back to Nortech Foods, creating a local closed-loop relationship where food waste becomes energy supporting regional industry.
• SARVALcoreTechnology or IntegrationPartnership with sister company SARVAL for rendering processes. Category 3 Animal By-Product material is directed into responsible rendering where it is converted into pet food ingredients and recovered oils. These oils are used as feedstock for Sustainable Aviation Fuel and other biofuels.
• SARIAcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerReFood is part of SARIA, Europe's leading food waste recycler and renewable energy producer. SARIA provides the parent company structure and strategic direction for ReFood's operations across the UK.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Biffa plc: Biffa is a major UK waste management company with food waste collection as a growing vertical and partnerships with AD operators. Serves similar enterprise customers (retail, hospitality, manufacturing) and competes for local authority food waste contracts post-Simpler Recycling.
• Suez Recycling and Recovery UK: Suez runs significant UK food waste processing capacity including AD facilities and offers commercial collection services targeting retail, hospitality, and public sector customers. Competes with ReFood for the same enterprise customer base and Food Waste legislation-driven demand.
• Veolia UK & Ireland: Veolia operates one of the UK's largest commercial waste collection and recycling networks, including food waste streams via anaerobic digestion and composting. Directly comparable as a competitor for large enterprise food waste contracts (NHS, hospitality, retail) and overlapping ABP-licensed processing infrastructure.
• FCC Environment: FCC Environment operates anaerobic digestion facilities and provides commercial and council food waste collection services across the UK. Directly comparable as an AD-based food waste processor targeting similar local authority and enterprise customers.

Emerging players

• Clearfleau: Clearfleau builds and operates on-site and near-site AD systems for food and drink manufacturers, similar to ReFood's bulk food manufacturing services. Comparable as a specialist AD operator competing for food manufacturer and processor waste streams.
• Anglian Water (Recycling Services): Anglian Water's recycling division operates AD and food waste processing infrastructure in eastern England. Comparable as a regional AD operator with food waste processing capability, though with utility parent governance rather than purely private capital.

Others

• Olio: Olio operates a food surplus redistribution platform via an app-based volunteer network, partnering with ReFood on the Dolce Schools Catering initiative. Comparable as an ecosystem participant addressing food waste at the prevention/surplus end rather than processing, complementary rather than directly competitive.

Direct peers

• Severn Trent Green Power: Severn Trent Green Power operates multiple UK AD facilities processing food waste into biogas and biofertiliser with grid injection. Direct AD-based competitor with overlapping food waste collection and processing capability and renewable energy offtake.
• Biogen (Anaerobic Digestion): Biogen operates a network of UK anaerobic digestion facilities accepting food waste and producing renewable energy. Direct competitor for both feed-in organic waste streams and for selling renewable energy, with comparable technology and certification (PAS110).

Regional players

• Quartz Biofuels / Quantum Waste: Quantum Waste is a UK-based food waste collection specialist with AD processing capability, targeting commercial customers similar to ReFood. Comparable as a regional/SME-tier competitor in food waste collection, though smaller in national scale.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ReFoodUK
• Facebookfacebook.com/p/ReFood-UK-100063786423371
• LinkedInuk.linkedin.com/company/refood-uk
• Instagraminstagram.com/refooduk/?hl=en

Compliance7 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about ReFood UK