Authority for Justice and Consumer Protection

Disposal of animal carcasses and animal by-products

Dead animals and certain animal by-products must be disposed of by a rendering facility.

Detailed description

Dead animals (domestic, pet, zoo, circus and, under certain circumstances, wild animals) and certain waste of animal origin, such as slaughterhouse waste or leftovers from restaurants or canteen kitchens, must be disposed of properly.



The harmless disposal of these animal carcasses and waste is an important part of animal disease control and public health care and is carried out by the respective commissioned companies. Only through effective treatment is it possible to render harmless identified or unidentified pathogens of diseases in animal bodies or their parts. Therefore, dead animals and certain animal parts must be properly disposed of in a specialized carcass disposal facility. Kitchen and food waste from gastronomy and canteen kitchens that contains animal components (e.g. leftover meat, sausages) are also subject to statutory disposal, which is uniformly regulated throughout Europe.



Dead animals definitely do not belong in the bio bin or on the compost.



If you have your own property and it is not in a water catchment area, you may bury your pet on your property. The animal's body must be covered by a layer of earth at least 50 cm thick.


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Information

Prerequisites

  • Business registration in the area of the FHH
  • Other requirements vary depending on the type of activity and must be checked on a case-by-case basis.

Documents required

  • application
  • Excerpt of trade register
  • Plans of the plants / establishments that are approved
  • Additional documents are required for certain plants or companies, which are communicated in the application process

Please note

No

Deadlines

The competent authority must be informed of the activity before the start.

Procedure

  • Application to the competent authority
  • Document review
  • On-site inspection of the plants/businesses
  • Approval of the company or the system including allocation of an approval number

Processing time

The testing effort varies depending on the type of activity.

Fees

The amount of the fee depends on the complexity of the processing

Address and contact information

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Keywords: Rotten meat slurry Wildlife Laboratory animals K3 material K2 material K1 material risk meat slaughterhouse waste carcass disposal animal by-products animal part disgusting meat dead animals

Last updated: 16.05.2026