The LIFE BIOBEST Comprehensive Guidance presents key policy recommendations to strengthen the EU legal framework for bio-waste management. Drawing from extensive research and stakeholder consultation, this document outlines three interconnected areas for improvement: boosting effective models for separate collection and recycling, promoting reliable markets for compost and digestate, and enhancing monitoring and enforcement of bio-waste regulations.
The guidance provides concrete policy measures to help close the gap between current practices and potential capture rates, addressing the fact that only 26% of kitchen waste is currently collected separately in the EU. It proposes specific legally binding targets, economic instruments, and monitoring requirements to support the EU’s transition toward more efficient bio-waste management and healthier soils.
Validated by 21 stakeholders representing 13 entities from across Europe, this document serves as a roadmap for EU policymakers working to improve bio-waste management.
A summary video presenting the key recommendations is available with subtitles in 11 EU languages.
Available in English.
The Guidelines summary consolidates the key takeaways from LIFE BIOBEST guidelines on bio-waste separate collection, governance and economic incentives, compost and digestate, and communication and engagement practices. The aim is to support upper-level authorities in streamlining policy measures and lower-level authorities in implementing effective solutions.
Available in English.
The D3.2 Guideline on governance and economic incentives, published as part of the LIFE BIOBEST project, discusses essential governance tools and economic instruments to enhance bio-waste management schemes. This guideline presents practical examples of these instruments in action and includes an analysis of the economic viability of best practices from separate collection to treatment.
This guideline, along with three additional guidelines on bio-waste separate collection, compost and digestate, and communication and engagement practices, aims to support upper-level authorities in streamlining policy measures and lower-level authorities in implementing effective solutions. The guidelines serve as crucial resources for municipalities, policymakers, waste haulers, recycling entities, and technical practitioners, whether they are in the initial stages of bio-waste implementation or have advanced management systems.
Available in English.
The D3.4 Country Factsheets on the analysis of communication and engagement practices, published as part of the LIFE BIOBEST project, delve into effective public communication and education strategies. This guideline analyzes successful experiences from various countries, highlighting the impact of public participation and awareness on bio-waste management schemes.
This guideline, along with three additional guidelines on bio-waste separate collection, compost and digestate, and governance and economic incentives, aims to support upper-level authorities in streamlining policy measures and lower-level authorities in implementing effective solutions. The guidelines serve as crucial resources for municipalities, policymakers, waste haulers, recycling entities, and technical practitioners, whether they are in the initial stages of bio-waste implementation or have advanced management systems.
Available in English.
The D3.3 Guideline on quality compost and digestate, published as part of the LIFE BIOBEST project, breaks down the treatment technologies and resources that support the production of compost and digestate. The guideline provides insights about the processing options, analysis of product characteristics, quality assurance systems as well as related EU legislation and the ECN quality assurance scheme.
This guideline, along with three additional guidelines on bio-waste separate collection, governance and economic incentives, and communication and engagement practices, aims to support upper-level authorities in streamlining policy measures and lower-level authorities in implementing effective solutions. The guidelines serve as crucial resources for municipalities, policymakers, waste haulers, recycling entities, and technical practitioners, whether they are in the initial stages of bio-waste implementation or have advanced management systems.
Available in English.
The D3.1 Guideline on separate collection, published as part of the LIFE BIOBEST project, offers a comprehensive overview of various bio-waste collection schemes, assessing their pros and cons. It includes a set of Best Practices focusing on collection from households and other producers in diverse contexts.
This guideline, along with three additional guidelines on governance and economic incentives, compost and digestate, and communication and engagement practices, aims to support upper-level authorities in streamlining policy measures and lower-level authorities in implementing effective solutions. The guidelines serve as crucial resources for municipalities, policymakers, waste haulers, recycling entities, and technical practitioners, whether they are in the initial stages of bio-waste implementation or have advanced management systems.
Available in English.
In view of the EU-wide mandatory separate collection of textile waste as of 2025, municipalities have the chance to align textile collection with the waste hierarchy and support a system of local reuse, particularly for clothing. This paper provides municipalities with an overview of good practices and lessons learned from the separate collection of textile waste across Europe.
An optimised collection system can support the implementation of local zero waste solutions. While there is no one-size-fits-all solution, we have identified key success factors, including adopting the collection method to the needs of citizens, mandating quality sorting for reuse, promoting local reuse, and setting up a good governance structure. The governance of the system should seek to integrate the local collection and reuse into the wider policy framework and link social policies with circular economy objectives.
Municipalities hold key levers to steer the system towards local reuse by requiring collectors to generate and report data as well as set performance indicators in line with the waste hierarchy. Finally, the system must anticipate the introduction of the EU-wide introduction of the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) scheme for textiles, which is currently being negotiated at the EU level and is likely to become mandatory in all Member States after 2027.
Available in English.
Executive Summary available in English, French, and Dutch.
The EU’s Waste Framework Directive requires all Member States to separately collect bio-waste from January 1, 2024. With ambitious recycling targets of 60–65%, effective bio-waste collection is crucial for meeting circular economy goals. However, some municipalities may opt for cheaper, less effective collection methods, such as large street bins, risking lower recycling performance.
This paper presents data from various European regions, demonstrating that door-to-door collection yields the highest quantity and quality of bio-waste. It outlines key performance indicators and policy recommendations for municipalities aiming to implement high-performing systems. The study conclusively finds that door-to-door collection is the most efficient and cost-effective method for achieving high-quality bio-waste recycling.
Available in English, French, Italian, Portuguese, Ukrainian, Estonian, and Hungarian.
The Zero Waste Training Handbook is a resource developed under the BEZWA project to empower changemakers and enhance their impact on zero waste at the local level. It supports the Zero Waste Ambassador and Trainer curricula by deepening topic understanding and providing exercises and materials for training. The handbook is divided into two main parts, with added chapters on values, wellbeing, and metacognition to enhance learning. It can be used as a complete guide or accessed by individual chapters for focused work on specific topics.
For future improvements, we welcome here your feedback after reading any of these documents.
This document is the result of the BEZWA project (Building a European Zero Waste Academy) – an Erasmus+ funded collaboration between five organisations with the main aim to create a strong educational framework in support of the zero waste cities movement in Europe. The project partners were Zero Waste Europe, Ekologi brez meja, Estonian University of Life Sciences and Tallinn University, with Let’s Do It Foundation (Zero Waste Estonia) as the project coordinator.
A structured curricula for Zero Waste Trainers, who could help municipalities to gain the knowledge and resources to design and operate effective zero waste strategies in their communities.
While the aim of the Zero Waste Ambassador curriculum is to provide competences needed to support and drive communities in Europe towards long term systemic change for zero waste, the Zero Waste Trainer curriculum gives insights on how to train Ambassadors. This curriculum provides educators with a framework and a set of principles to be able to teach the most important concepts and practical knowledge of how to educate different target groups on zero waste and other complex topics.
Certified Trainers from all across Europe are listed on our expert page, which you could be added to. An expert certification will give you confidence in carrying out your mission, as well as helping you advance in your career. Qualified knowledge in implementing a circular economy is increasingly sought after in all sectors and various positions.
If you want to learn more about getting the Certificate, please contact us at [email protected]
This document is the result of the BEZWA project (Building a European Zero Waste Academy) – an Erasmus+ funded collaboration between five organisations with the main aim to create a strong educational framework in support of the zero waste cities movement in Europe. The project partners were Zero Waste Europe, Ekologi brez meja, Estonian University of Life Sciences and Tallinn University, with Let’s Do It Foundation as the project coordinator.
A comprehensive curriculum designed to train Zero Waste Ambassadors, empowering local authorities with the tools, resources, and expertise needed to develop and implement impactful zero waste strategies within their communities.
The skills and competencies gained through this training programme are certified with a Zero Waste Ambassador Certificate. It is a separate process where you will be supported, either through training or via the verification of your competencies independently. You can apply to become certified and receive the Certificate through the Zero Waste Cities programme. Certified Ambassadors and Trainers from all across Europe are listed on our expert page.
If you want to learn more about getting the Certificate, please contact us at [email protected]
This document is the result of the BEZWA project (Building a European Zero Waste Academy) – an Erasmus+ funded collaboration between five organisations with the main aim to create a strong educational framework in support of the zero waste cities movement in Europe. The project partners were Zero Waste Europe, Ekologi brez meja, Estonian University of Life Sciences and Tallinn University, with Let’s Do It Foundation as the project coordinator.
Zero Waste Europe, together with Slow Food created a briefing, aimed at providing support to local municipalities to help reduce food waste through a holistic approach enabling the transition towards a sustainable food system.
The guidance outlines the various actions that a municipality can implement to influence food waste reduction and stimulate its sustainable local food system. The guidance highlights examples of how similar policies have been successfully implemented throughout Europe.
Available in English, Hungarian, Montenegrin, and Croatian.
Adopting and implementing a local zero waste strategy allows municipalities to save resources, create jobs and concretely go down the path of circularity. However, the diversity of situations in Europe does not allow for each city to follow general guidelines and, depending on where they’re already at, the priority policies needed to achieve zero waste differ regularly.
Therefore, these publications are part of a series of scenarios written by Zero Waste Europe to give guidance to specific contexts commonly found across Europe. We do not aim to be comprehensive, nor to define a specific context precisely matching one municipality. Instead, we want to identify just some of the realities we see municipalities face on a daily basis and provide adapted paths towards becoming zero waste.
Zero Waste Europe, together with RREUSE, created a short briefing, aimed at providing support to local municipalities to help design effective and ambitious local reuse strategies.
The guidance outlines the key principles that every reuse strategy should prioritise, the benefits these strategies can bring for a municipality and highlights examples of how similar policies have been successfully implemented throughout Europe.
The COVID-19 pandemic underscored the unsustainable nature of consumption, particularly the reliance on single-use plastics. Despite lacking evidence of increased safety, these items proliferated, highlighting the urgent need for a transition to reusable solutions as outlined in the EU’s Single-Use Plastics (SUP) Directive and Circular Economy Action Plan.
European cities are at the forefront of plastic waste reduction, pioneering measures such as banning single-use items, implementing deposit return systems, and adopting scalable zero-waste solutions. While national and regional governments bear responsibility for enforcing the SUP Directive, municipalities are critical drivers of change. By introducing impactful reuse policies and systems, they can accelerate the transition to a circular economy.
To support municipalities in this role, Zero Waste Europe and the Rethink Plastic alliance have developed a practical guide. The guide provides strategies for green public procurement, establishing reuse systems, and creating effective recycling incentives.
Across Europe, in response to the growing waste and climate crises we face, a growing number of cities are adopting zero waste policies and strategies. Yet the urgency and scale of the problem requires an immediate increase in the speed and impact of zero waste and circular economy strategies being implemented on the ground.
This is why we have designed a guide to help inspire and support communities begin their journey towards zero waste.
‘Creating a methodology for zero waste municipalities’ is a toolkit that has been designed collaboratively by Hnuti DUHA, Ekologi Brez Meja and Zero Waste Europe with the aim of providing an introduction to some of the key principles of what zero waste is today. The toolkit also covers the concept of zero waste, its guiding principles, 10 clear steps for designing a zero waste plan at the municipal level and a challenge to some of the myths and fiction surrounding the narrative on zero waste.
In addition to the toolkit, we have created a number of practical tools for municipalities and communities, including a groundbreaking calculator to see the benefits that adopting a zero waste approach could bring to your municipality, specifically regarding a reduction in the costs of waste management, the levels of waste generated and Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions.
Whether you are a municipality official, waste professional, civil society actor, business owner or resident, you will find that zero waste is relevant for you.
We hope that this toolkit provides you with the skills and knowledge to begin your journey towards zero waste.
Often, municipalities and communities are daunted by the perceived challenge that becoming zero waste entails. It is therefore important to break down what zero waste looks like at the local level and to outline the step-by-step process of what this could look like. At the initial stage of discussions, it is beneficial to get a group of relevant stakeholders together for a meeting/workshop to begin discussions on how the local community can begin its journey towards zero waste.
Therefore, Zero Waste Europe and our members have created a set of tools to guide the implementation of this introductory workshop, as well as a useful exercise to be conducted in groups that allows participants to understand better the different requirements, strategies and difficulties that surround the creation of a zero waste municipality programme.
These tools have been designed in order to share understanding on what zero waste is and the benefits this approach brings for municipalities. The group activity should be conducted after the presentation during your workshop/meeting. It’s aim is to build on the introduction to zero waste that the presentation provides, giving participants an interactive opportunity to put themselves in the shoes of key community stakeholders to come together and discuss how to create a zero waste plan.
Supporting documents have also been included to help ensure the smooth running of the workshop, including a draft agenda and factsheets which should be provided for participants during the group activity. Each document provides space for you to tailor and amend to your specific context.
Conducting a Waste Assessment is an important first step for municipalities and communities towards adopting a zero waste municipality plan. This tool has been developed to guide stakeholders when conducting both a waste assessment and brand audit, which have been designed to help municipalities analyse and understand the current levels of waste generation locally, from which future policies can be based upon to ensure as much material and resource is recovered as possible:
- What non-recoverable materials are most common and how can these be replaced with reusable, repairable or recyclable materials
- How to design your separate collection system so that it encourages the least amount of residual waste generation as possible
- What support residents need & therefore should receive to help them reduce their waste generation
- How much budget to allocate to your ZW Plan and the level of income you can expect to generate from this.
Building on existing materials, we have developed this “how to” guide on the necessary steps needed when conducting an assessment of municipal waste. It is designed for both municipalities and community stakeholders, recognising the strength and success of such assessments when they have been conducted by engaging a wide cross-sector of the community.