Food, Drink and Milk Industries Best Available Techniques (FDM BAT)
SEPA is required to review associated permits following the publication of the revised Best Available Techniques (BAT) Reference Document (BRef) for Food, Drink and Milk Industries. The associated BAT conclusions to this document were published on the 4th December 2019 in the Official Journal of the European Union.
This document is available through the following link: BAT Conclusions for Food, Drink and Milk Industries.
Sectors included in scope of FDM BAT Review
The FDM applies to all industries carrying out described activities in the FDM BRef. The BRef covers a wide range of activities including:
- Animal Feed
- Brewing
- Dairies
- Ethanol production
- Fish and shellfish processing
- Fruit and vegetable sector
- Grain milling
- Meat processing
- Oilseed processing and vegetable oil refining
- Soft drinks and nectar/juice made from processed fruit and vegetables
- Starch production
- Sugar manufacturing
- Dry pasta
- Bakery goods
- Coffee beverages
- Distilled beverages
- Wine production
- Citric acid production
- Yeast
- Confectionary
- Malting
The full list can be found in the Joint Research Centre (JRC): Reference document for the Food, Drink and Milk Industries - BREF 2019
Process and timetable
March 2023
SEPA issued Further Information Notices asking operators to carry out a gap analysis of their activities using a spreadsheet response tool to allow a comparison against each individual BAT conclusions specific to the activities undertaken on their installation(s). This assessment identified where the activities that were already meeting the BAT requirement, where the BAT requirement was not being met but would be achieved before December 2023 or where the BAT requirement was not achievable before December 2023. Interpretational guidance is available to provide clarification on BAT requirements.
19 May 2023
Closing date for operator gap analysis to be completed.
20 May 2023
SEPA carried out an initial screen of the information submitted and notified operators if there was anything missing, or if more detail was needed.
SEPA is now in the process of assessing the information provided and comparing it against each BAT conclusion to determine compliance. We may have further discussion with operators to clarify any issues arising.
November 2024 onwards
SEPA is now in the process of assessing the information provided and comparing it against each BAT conclusion to determine compliance. We may have further discussion with operators to clarify any issues arising.
Following a review there are three potential outcomes:
- Site meets the BAT conclusions and there is no change needed to the permit.
- The permit is varied to ensure it complies with the regulations and reflects BAT. This will be a SEPA initiated variation which has no charge. Sites have a right to appeal varied conditions.
- Enforcement action taken where the permit holder cannot comply with the permit or BAT.
Contacts and links for further information
Further information or guidance e-mail: BREF Reviews team
FAQs
Yes, if they require further information to complete the BRef review. You will also be consulted on any variation of permit conditions.
If you don’t believe the Food, Drink and Milk Industries BRef review applies to your primary activity, then please email BREF Reviews team
The general BAT conclusions 1-15 apply to all FDM activities and you should assess how you comply against each one of these. If you operate an Anaerobic Digestion Plant you should also assess compliance against the relevant BAT conclusions in the Waste Treatment BRef.
Please ensure all documentation is clearly named and linked to a BAT condition. Large files can be shared via Sharepoint. To request a link, you should email BREF Reviews team
The FDM BREF reviews are one of a number of activities due for review under the Industrial Emissions Directive. Competing priorities and demands on SEPA staff have delayed SEPA's progress on reviews across all activity areas. We are working with the Scottish Government to prioritise the work based on the legislative timetable and available resource.
Since it is a SEPA initiated variation, you will not be charged for the review.
If the change is related to a BAT conclusion this should be discussed with SEPA. If it is unrelated, e.g., to add activities or make process alterations, this must be done as an operator-initiated variation. There is a charge for this.
- If your permit has been surrendered, please notify SEPA by emailing the BREF Reviews team after which you will not need to take any further action.
- If your site is temporarily mothballed, please email BREF Reviews team
Please notify SEPA by emailing the BREF Reviews Team and provide details of the particular circumstances and the timescales involved with the proposed surrender application.
We are organising our resources to complete the reviews. We have a Leadership Team in place focusing on ongoing BRef reviews and we are setting up a focused team working offline specifically to assess the FDM reviews and carry out any required variations. We are looking to streamline this process as much as possible which starts with good quality gap analysis information.
SEPA assesses compliance against the current permit. If your permit is varied following the BREF review, then SEPA will only assess compliance against the new conditions once they have taken effect.
If you think you need a derogation, please email BREF Reviews team as soon possible. Any derogation requests will be considered in accordance with SEPA’s Guidance on Appraising a Request for Derogation (IED-TG-44 Regulation 25(12) – Derogation from BAT-AEL).
The reasons we need the information to be resubmitted include:
- The officer carrying out the review may not be aware of the site operations and previous performance; and they may not have access to the working file held in the office.
- We may not have access to the electronic information following the cyberattack on SEPA.
The information previously submitted may be out of date, e.g., management plans may be updated annually, or more recent monitoring results may be available.