Waste Ordinance: the 10 fractions in practice

Companies have long had to source separate their production waste. But from January 1 2023 the waste order came into force with a new concrete requirement: all household-like waste at the workplace — i.e. the waste that resembles what we produce at home such as food waste paper and packaging — must be sorted into 10 fractions in line with private households.

§The 10 fractions

§Main rule: separate sorting

The starting point in the waste regulation is that each fraction must be kept separate in its own container. So as a general rule you cannot mix e.g. metal and plastic in the same bucket even if both will later be recycled—the separation ensures that the materials remain clean enough for recycling to actually succeed.

§Why are the requirements tightened?

The purpose is to get more waste recycled and less burned or deposited. The cleaner a fraction is kept — that is the less it is mixed with other materials — the easier and cheaper it is to convert into new raw materials. The rules should therefore be seen as an implementation of the waste hierarchy: preventing waste is best but when waste arises it should lose as little value as possible along the way.

§How to set up the sorting

• 01Map which of the 10 fractions actually arise at your site and in what quantities
• 02Place containers close to where waste arises so it's easy to do the right thing
• 03Use clear and consistent signage, preferably with both text and symbols
• 04Designate a responsible person who follows up on whether sorting works in everyday life.
• 05Remember hazardous waste and electronics, which often require special storage and disposal

§What about construction waste and production waste?

The 10 fractions apply to household-like waste — canteen waste, office paper and similar. Construction waste and other production-specific waste are covered by other, more specific sorting requirements, which are often specified by the municipality. A building site must therefore typically comply with both sets of rules: source sorting of the construction waste itself according to its own categories, and the 10 fractions for waste from site offices and canteens.

§Municipality's role and control

The municipalities designate and supervise how companies in their area handle waste and have the opportunity to respond if a company consistently fails to meet sorting requirements. Many municipalities also offer guidance and practical instructions on how individual fractions should be collected and where they should be delivered, which makes it easier for smaller businesses in particular to find out which arrangements apply locally.

A company can typically choose between using the municipality's own collection scheme or entering into an agreement with a private waste company as long as the sorting meets the same requirements for separate fractions. Regardless of solution it is the company's own responsibility to ensure that waste is actually sorted correctly before it leaves the workplace — responsibility does not shift to the waste company just because waste is picked up by an external party.

For the individual employee the regulations mean that waste sorting is no longer a voluntary good habit but a legally mandated part of the working day. Knowing your 10 fractions and where they go is therefore a concrete skill in green work — and a skill that appears across industries regardless of whether you work in construction transport cleaning or in an office.