Legal requirements can be difficult to wrap your head around at times and some seem as if they’re directly working against you. Nonetheless, they must be adhered to otherwise you will face a storm of legal action and could face fines and even prosecution. When running a restaurant or a business that serves hot food, it is a legal requirement to own a grease trap. Not only do these effectively help to manage waste but are required to adhere to numerous laws. Some of these laws and regulations have been in place for more than 20 years and were created to protect staff, customers and the environment. Grease trap laws in the UK are nothing new, but what do these laws mean for food service businesses and how can they adhere to them? Here at Goodflo , we know a thing or two about grease traps and why grease traps are required by law. Understanding the laws is important if you are running a business where grease is a product of the job, additionally, you could install a grease trap in your home if you wanted. In this blog, we will outline the various grease trap UK laws and regulations that mandate why and where a grease trap is needed. What is a grease trap? Before we look at the UK laws, let’s first define what a grease trap is. A grease trap, also known as a grease interceptor, is a solution to prevent blockages and clogs in sewage and water systems caused by FOGs (Fats, Oils, and Grease). Grease traps will efficiently collect the FOGs before they enter a sewage system and store them in a separate container which can then be discarded properly and legally. Are there different types of grease traps? There is a wide selection of grease traps available in the UK that will suit different businesses for different reasons. Grease management for commercial kitchens can be solved by different types of grease traps including: Above-ground grease traps Underground grease traps Grease dosing systems Grease removal units Within each of these types of grease traps, there are different models to choose from and it is important to conduct research and seek advice on which grease trap will work best for you. For more information, you can read our blog on the many benefits and types of grease traps available in the UK. Why are grease traps required by law? The grease trap laws in the UK help protect the environment and public safety if FOGs that are produced in businesses, such as commercial kitchens, are not managed effectively, they will cause drastic issues and problems within the UK sewage and water systems. Here are the legislations and laws businesses must follow relating to the management and disposal of FOGs: Building Act 1984 Established in 1984, section 59 of this law states that local authority requires satisfactory provision for drainage of an existing building by an owner and failure to do so will mean the service of a notice on the owner – one of these provisions can include the installation of a grease trap. Food Safety Act 1990 If you are found to have problems arising from the effect of FOGs on drains, local authorities have the power to inspect premises under the Food Safety Act 1990. If your business is failing to comply with the Food Hygiene Regulations, you could face prosecution or an emergency prohibition order which prevents any trade from taking place on the property – in other words, they will shut your business down. Environmental Protection Act 1990/Environmental Protection Act (Duty of Care) Regulations 1991 Section 34 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 and the Environmental Protection Act (Duty of Care) Regulations 1991 as amended, states that every commercial premise arranging collection and disposal of waste – which includes FOGs – must ensure that the waste is managed correctly from where it is produced to where it is disposed of by a registered waste courier. Additionally, a record must be kept of all collections and the producer of the waste must be satisfied that the waste has been taken to a licensed disposal site. Any environmental inspection agent or local authority can request documentation relating to the registration of waste couriers. If the waste producer can not produce these documents, then they could face a fixed penalty of £300, or face prosecution. Water Industry Act 1991 Under section 111 of the Water Industry Act 1991, it is a criminal offence to discharge any matter into the public sewage system, which could interfere with the free flow of wastewater. Prosecution, imprisonment and substantial fines can result from causing blockages, pollution and flooding with costs incurred to fix the damages. There are several other UK grease trap laws and regulations that businesses need to follow, where you can find all the information here, on our legal compliance page . Grease management solutions with Goodflo It is vital that if your business is producing grease and other FOGs you have a grease trap installed. Fortunately, Goodflo is here to help! We are expert, professional and licensed suppliers and installers of grease traps and other grease management solutions, in addition to providing servicing and maintenance plans to keep your grease traps running for years to come. We are also fully licensed to remove waste that is produced. Contact us for a wide selection of grease traps and grease management solutions for your business. You can call us on 01926 334466 or send us an email at sales@goodflo.com .  

The first ever grease trap was patented in 1883/4 by Nathaniel T. Whiting and has become a legal requirement in the UK today for any hot food service provider. According to the Water Industry Act 1991 , Section 111 it is a criminal offence to throw or permit anything to empty into a public sewer that is going to create a blockage or impede the treatment of the water, water flow or its contents. Other legislation, such as the Environmental Protection Act 1990 means that all waste has to be properly disposed of, and, as the Food Safety Act 1990 states that companies must deal with the build-up or blockage caused by fats, oils and greases (FOGs), otherwise it will mean they fail to comply with food hygiene regulations. What is a grease trap? Underground grease traps, or grease interceptors, are an essential part of any food service business’s wastewater management system. These grease traps help to prevent clogs and blockages in the sewerage system caused by FOGs that are deposited down drains when washing dishes or cleaning cooking equipment. The build-up can cause major problems for the entire sewer system as grease and other materials will accumulate over time and form large masses of debris called fatbergs. Grease traps operate by collecting grease and other solid waste before it enters the sewers. The grease is then held in a container while water passes through, allowing only clean water to be discharged into the local sewer systems. The FOG is then disposed of properly and can even be recycled in some instances. Waste from grease traps can be mixed with sawdust, moss or wood chips and used for composting or can be turned into biodiesel. How does a grease trap work? A grease trap is essentially a box into which all wastewater from sinks, pot wash and dishwashers in a hot food providing kitchen empties into. They work on the principle that FOG materials float and other solid particles sink, allowing the baffles to trap these elements so that the remaining wastewater can then flow out into the sewer system to be water treated. Depending on the size of the kitchen and the amount of food being produced daily, and therefore the amount of FOG produced, a kitchen will have one, or several, grease trap units installed, ensuring that between 50% - 90% of FOGs are successfully eliminated. Most traps will need to be cleaned out every 90 days, although depending on how much food is produced by the kitchen and the size of the degreaser, it may be more like every one to two months unless an automatic grease trap is fitted. What types of grease traps are available? There are several different types of grease traps: Grease traps, or separators, literally trap FOG within them and allow the cleaner wastewater to pass through into the sewer. They require a professional service to empty and clean them regularly. A grease trap works well for lower volumes of flow, such as is created by smaller cafes and restaurants. Grease Removal Units (GRU) or grease interceptors, are like the standard grease trap, but they remove the food debris and FOG into external units ready for disposal. These are generally required for larger-scaled establishments, such as top restaurant chains and fast-food outlets, which have a higher volume of flow daily. Dosing Systems introduce a biological element into the treatment of FOG which breaks it down into less harmful products. The Goodflo patented G-Bag grease trap which doesn’t require an electrical supply, manual bailing or suction cleaning and features a unique plastic bag or trap with integrated pipework and baffles which can simply be removed and replaced when required. Some systems are manual, or passive, and require regular cleaning out by a professional service, whereas automatic systems are designed to work to remove the FOG on a predetermined schedule. Grease traps can be located above ground or below, and inside the kitchen or outside the building. Your grease management process will be dependent on what is already installed in your kitchen or the available space for installing new equipment. What are the benefits? To start with, the main benefit is that you will be environmentally and legally compliant. As stated above, there are a lot of legalities surrounding this issue, to prevent the build-up of blockages and the environmental impact these can have. Any hot food-producing kitchen that doesn’t have a grease trapping system is liable to hefty fines and lawsuits. A grease trap for your kitchen will make sure that the public sewerage system next to your company won’t become blocked. A blockage can cause the backing up of wastewater and sewage into your kitchen which is unhygienic and unpleasant and will cause damage as well as downtime, all of which means huge expenses for the business. Without a grease trap, food waste and FOG can consolidate into a solid mass, or even a fatberg, which becomes difficult or nearly impossible to remove or clean properly, thereby causing wastewater to drain more slowly. So, installing an effective grease management system will prevent this situation. Bad smells are also caused by poor grease management. The solid food waste particles and FOG breaks down releasing hydrogen sulphur gas which percolates back into the kitchen making an unpleasant environment for staff and customers. The resulting sulphuric acid will also begin to break down the inside of the tank and mean that an expensive replacement is needed. A system that effectively removes food particles and FOG prevents these damaging issues. Any of the effects listed above - which are likely to result from poor handling of grease and waste management - will ultimately result in downtime for the business as well as large outlays in fixing damage and problems, so the bottom line is that the biggest benefit of an effective grease trap is that it is going to save you money in the long run. Goodflo has been in the business of installing internal and external grease traps for years across the UK, and has the expertise to advise and install the ideal grease trap for your kitchen, during a time that avoids the highest footfall for your food service business. Get in touch today to find out how we can help you find the best grease trap system for your commercial kitchen’s requirements.

Grease traps, also commonly known as grease interceptors, grease separators, and fat traps are devices designed to reduce the fats, oils, and grease (FOGs) entering the sewerage system via drain runs. They are put in place in commercial kitchens or any establishment that cooks hot food. A grease trap is a device that is placed near, or under a commercial kitchen setup. Connecting to the drainage pipework, the grease trap effectively filters the wash-up wastewater from the FOG, containing these contaminants which can be then discarded in the proper manner. Here at Goodflo we have over 20 years of experience supplying grease traps for commercial kitchens across the UK and are here to tell you which type of grease trap would be the perfect choice for your commercial kitchen. Goodflo grease traps for commercial kitchens in the UK So, what type of grease trap should you get? What size should you get? Which one you choose will also come down to how busy your commercial kitchen is. Goodflo offers several different grease trap products. Let’s take a look at them below. G-Bag Grease Trap System SS One of our most popular grease traps, the G-Bag Grease Trap System SS model is the perfect choice for commercial kitchens that serve up to 120 meals per day. The casing is made from premium-grade stainless steel and comes with two G-Bags and appropriate plumbing fixings. This is incredibly easy to install and maintain and with the use of our handy G-Bags , you can empty these with absolutely no contact with the waste, so even the most squeamish of people can use this with ease. Goodflo G-Bag System PE This slightly larger grease trap can also be fitted under or close to most commercial kitchen washing sinks to effectively remove FOGs as well as food particles from daily cleaning and wash-ups. The system put in place can be maintained easily and eliminates the hassle of daily and weekly cleaning or removal of grease trap waste. If your commercial kitchen has one to two commercial sinks, then the high-density polyethylene casing can be placed in the appropriate location. G-Bag Grease Trap + Dosing Package This cost-effective package combines our sophisticated stainless steel grease trap system as well as an automatic dosing pump that is battery-powered, combined with 20 litres of our Grease Dose Premium solution . The battery allows the system to automatically release a dose of our grease solution, which is made up using selected micro-organisms that digest grease, in your commercial kitchen. These are all viable options for grease traps for commercial kitchens but there is another type of grease trap that is external, rather than being by your kitchen set-up. These are known as underground grease traps. Underground grease traps Underground grease traps are designed for external, below-ground, and compact installations which meet UK building regulations. If you run a commercial kitchen with multiple sinks of more than three and have a higher number of meals served per day of up to 250, then an underground grease trap is the more viable option to choose. Goodflo can provide a wide range of underground grease traps which are sized from 150 litres up to 2300 litres for larger operations. Upfront, these are on the more expensive side compared to the grease traps that would be located for indoor use, however, they are the more capable system to effectively stop FOGs and food solids from entering general drainage and sewage systems. The FOGI range offers up to 2600 litre sized tanks which are expertly designed with larger commercial kitchens in mind. They are the optimal choice for other industries including farm shops, leisure centres, hospitals, prisons, hotels, food manufacturing plants, and of course restaurants. Goodflo can provide you with everything you need We specialise in providing you with innovative technologies which utilise clean technology with measures in place that promote a healthy environment. We can deliver to you the type of grease trap for your commercial kitchen that you are looking for. If you need an easy-to-install and use internal grease trap, or one from our range of exterior underground grease traps, we have you covered. If you are looking for a new grease trap for your commercial kitchen or other important products including dosing solutions, removal units or replacement bags, contact us now on 01926 334466      

“We have been using Aqua Mundus, here at the Royal Academy of Engineering for many years and continue to be appreciative of the excellent service they provide. They offer flexibility when requesting additional service visits and are always accommodating when faced with last minute service changes. We would certainly recommend them.”     Ritchie Hepburn ​ Facilities Manager Royal Academy of Engineering   Royal academy of engineering utilises the Big Dipper range of automatic grease traps range. The Big Dipper® is a range of passive manual and automatic grease removal units, solids strainers, and accessories designed to keep your kitchen wastewater free flowing.  Manufactured for over 25 years and supplying over 50,000 units worldwide, with an industry leading 3 years warranty.  Installation of a Big Dipper System can reduce or eliminate grease problems and assures minimisation and elimination of costly fines through efficient separation and removal of free-floating Fats, Oils & Grease. It also helps reduce / eliminate pumping and disposal costs associated with conventional grease traps or interceptors. Find Out More About Our Big Dipper Range 

8,000,000 8 million tonnes of plastic are dumped in the ocean every year   48% 48% of the British public have flushed wet wipes   180,000,000 180 million - estimated number of cotton buds flushed down our toilets each year   48% 48% of the nation pour fats, oils and grease (FOG) down their drains   Unblocktober is the world’s first month-long national campaign and awareness month to improve the health of our drains, sewers, watercourses and seas - driven completely by the British public.   Unblocktober 2019 saw more than 5,000 Britons across the country pledge to change their kitchen and bathroom habits at home and at work to help save the environment, and this year we need even more of you to get involved.    So we are asking you to commit to not putting the following 16 items down the drain this month so you can make a big difference, without having to make a big effort...     You can find more information about  Unblocktober  on their website - https://www.unblocktober.org/

Aqua Mundus’ Managing Director, Kriss Ombler, participated in a recent Q&A session hosted for MBA students of Warwick Business School. Kriss was invited to sit on the Q&A panel by Warwick Business School Associate Fellow and family friend, Dr Peter Summerfield. Kriss was one of three entrepreneurs who were asked to participate in the discussion on entrepreneurship and provide insight into the challenges that business people face. Kriss comments: “I was delighted to be asked to participate in this event by Peter. Engaging with Warwick Business School students, who brought innovative and academic ideas to the fore of the discussion, was particularly stimulating. It also gave me a valuable opportunity to remove myself from the day-to-day running of Aqua Mundus and to think more about future strategy and plans for the business.” The Q&A session followed a lecture on business resilience by Dr Summerfield who is a respected businessman and mentor who focusses on supporting new business ventures in the areas of physics, chemistry, biology and engineering. Prior to his retirement, Dr Summerfield enjoyed a successful career in the global automotive and aerospace industries. He is committed to lifelong learning and, as well as Lecturing at Warwick University’s business school, recently completed a Certificate in Nanotechnology at Oxford University.

Kingspan Water & Energy has appointed grease management experts, Aqua Mundus, as a certified grease management installer and service company for its “Smartserv” grease products. Designed specifically for use in hospitality, foodservice and public sector applications, Kingspan’s grease management portfolio includes Trapzilla grease traps, iFOG bacteria dosing units, its SmartServ remote measuring and monitoring systems, ongoing maintenance support and tankering services. Benefiting from more than seven years’ experience in the installation and servicing of grease management solutions, Aqua Mundus is headed up by Kriss Ombler, who has worked in the industry for more than 15 years. Aqua Mundus is one of the UK’s leading independent grease management installation and service providers and works with numerous product manufacturers. The Aqua Mundus team handles installation, commissioning and servicing requirements on the complete range of grease management systems ranging from large EN1825 grease separators to small grease traps. Kriss Ombler, Managing Director of Aqua Mundus, comments: “Our certification by Kingspan underlines the quality of service and support we provide to the foodservice and related industries. We look forward to working with Kingspan and its customers.” For more information about Aqua Mundus visit www.aquamundus.co.uk

WHAT TO CONSIDER WHEN CHOOSING A GREASE TRAP As a responsible foodservice business, you’re keen to install a grease management solution to manage the fats, oils and grease entering your drainage system and the wider sewer network but how do you ensure you’ve chosen the right solution? Kriss Ombler provides some advice on the key factors to consider and questions to ask. 1) How many covers does your food establishment supply per day? This is important because it affects the amount of FOG (fats, oils and grease) that your kitchen is discharging. Your menu options (the type of food you produce) can affect the amount of grease produced so it’s useful to bear this in mind when deciding which grease trap you may require. The type of grease trap you purchase can be affected by the number of meals you serve per day, the type of cuisine you provide and your operating times. 2) How many sinks/appliances will be connected to the grease trap? If you only have one or two sinks in your kitchen then you won’t require the same type of grease trap as one that can manage four or five. Additionally, if you have a dishwasher connected to a grease trap it will affect the flow rate and the type of grease trap which is most suitable for your kitchen. Calculating the maximum flow rate your kitchen produces is essential when selecting your grease trap. At Aqua Mundus, we provide a sizing tool to help you work out the most appropriate grease trap for your premises. It can also save you money on maintenance and emptying costs on an ongoing basis. 3) How big is your kitchen? The grease trap you choose should reflect the type and size of kitchen in your food service establishment. If space comes at a premium, you may want to consider having your grease trap installed below ground or in a basement/plant room. SIZE MATTERS! If you opt for a grease trap that far exceeds your requirements it can mean you’re literally putting money down the drain, but if you choose one that is too small, it might be ineffective and you will increase the amount of maintenance it requires and as a result, ongoing running costs. 4) How hands-on do you want to be with your grease trap? Grease traps can be passive, manual or automatic depending on your specific requirements. Do you or your colleagues want to empty it or would you prefer a contractor such as Aqua Mundus to service it for you? Do your premises have access for a tanker to empty the grease trap, if that’s required? If you want a low maintenance grease trap you could consider a fully automated Grease Removal Unit that only requires two minutes of daily maintenance. 5) Durability – The quality of the product The phrase buy cheap buy twice is definitely a factor in this industry. When selecting which grease trap to install, it’s advisable to choose an industry recommended brand. If you do this then your grease trap will usually be installed with a guarantee on the parts, labour and construction. Some units are installed with three years warranty, giving you the peace of mind that comes from knowing your grease management is taken care of. Aqua Mundus is one of the UK’s leading independent grease management installation and service providers and works with numerous product manufacturers. The team handles installation, commissioning and servicing requirements on the complete range of grease management systems ranging from large EN1825 grease separators to small grease traps. For individual, project-specific guidance on grease trap specification, call us on 01386 832205  

Aqua Mundus become UK service partner for ACO.     Grease management experts, Aqua Mundus, have been appointed as the grease installation and servicing partner for ACO grease management systems in the UK.   Aqua Mundus has more than seven years’ experience of handling the installation and servicing of grease management solutions and is headed up by Kriss Ombler, who has worked in the industry for more than 15 years. Aqua Mundus works with numerous product manufacturers including ACO.   Kriss Ombler, Managing Director of Aqua Mundus, comments: “We’re delighted to be chosen as the official servicing and installation partner for ACO. ACO and Aqua Mundus share a strong commitment to providing the best quality products and services to their customers, and we look forward to working with the ACO team going forward and to building upon our already strong working relationship.”   Andy Buchan, Divisional Managing Director of ACO Building Drainage, said: “Aqua Mundus were the obvious choice for our business. They not only deliver an excellent customer service but, because they’re not aligned with a single manufacturer, they’re able to provide customers with impartial expert advice with regard to the installation, commissioning and the ongoing maintenance of grease management products. This, combined with their technical abilities, was a key factor in their appointment.”   Aqua Mundus’ ability to handle installation, commissioning and servicing requirements on the complete range of ACO grease management products, which includes everything from EN1825 grease separators to small grease traps, was also vitally important.   Aqua Mundus is now working on projects for ACO customers based throughout the UK.   For more information about Aqua Mundus visit www.aquamundus.co.uk