Following the most recent heatwaves, the Environment Agency, AKA the EA, has reported working with the waste sector to ensure there is capacity to process the massive influx of food waste created following freezer failures due to dramatically increased temperatures, resulting in rotting food to be urgently disposed of.

Our summers are getting hotter here in the UK, and heatwaves are more intense, as temperatures reached over 30°C in May and over 37°C in June, with yet more scorching heat forecast as we move into August. 

And, although the average temperature of our summers has steadily increased over recent years – all five of the warmest summers on record, for example, have occurred since 2003, with standout years like 2025 setting new records for sustained, season-wide warmth, and days exceeding 30°C have more than trebled, seeing the UK record its first-ever 40°C day in July 2022 – our infrastructure, alongside our processes – have only just begun to catch up with it.

Following the most recent heatwaves, the Environment Agency, AKA the EA, has reported working with the waste sector to ensure there is capacity to process the massive influx of food waste created following freezer failures due to dramatically increased temperatures, resulting in rotting food to be urgently disposed of.

But, whilst the headlines seem to be focusing on the immediate operational pressures of the situation – and understandably so – they tend to leave out a significant element: the systemic regulatory and compliance domino effect, particularly around APHA (Animal and Plant Health Agency) approvals, animal by-products (ABP), and the vulnerability of the supply chain when refrigeration systems fail.   

Essentially, when waste simply has to move fast, corners are cut and the risk of loads containing animal products being misclassified or sent to an AD plant without the necessary APHA approval is increased. 

And, although there may be no direct evidence of this actually happening, the risk it poses is still significant for AD operators, such as: 

• Fines of up to £5000 for specific animal health and welfare or byproduct breaches
• Immediate bans or operational shut downs until the issue is fully resolved
• Criminal prosecution for repeated or severe offences

Which, of course, can lead to further financial misfortune that can take months, if not years, to recover from.

So, as the summers here in the UK become both hotter and longer, and the heatwave increasingly intense, how can we approach these challenges through a structured, continuous improvement lens – rather than as a one-off anomaly – to ensure something like this doesn’t endanger the waste sector again? 

For Retailers: Move beyond temporary fixes; assess refrigeration resilience, and build robust emergency waste protocols that mandate source-separation before a crisis hits.

For AD Operators: Tighten incoming load checks during heatwave conditions to verify permits and APHA compliance proactively.

For Regulators & Industry Bodies: Propose a joined-up response plan involving the EA, APHA, local authorities, and the AD sector; ranging from clearer pre-approved capacity mapping to faster emergency permitting pathways.

In short, the recent UK heatwaves have perfectly demonstrated the real-world, significant and potentially devastating risks to the waste sector posed by climate change, and that climate change is so much more than a modern discussion point or a footnote in the political agenda. 

To truly manage the risks – or indeed stamp out the risks – posed by climate change to AD operators, they must anticipate, assume and act on these stresses before the temperature rises.