Do Cruise Ships Throw Food Overboard?

Carnival’s 2020 sustainability report reveals that cruise ships manage food waste onboard, including uneaten spoiled or unspoiled food scraps and substances generated onboard. Food waste not comminuted or ground can be disposed of 12 nautical miles en route and as far as practicable from coastlines outside of special and arctic waters. Discharge is prohibited within special and arctic waters. Onboard food waste recycling is crucial for sustainable food production. Most leftovers from cruise ship meals are safely converted into fish food, but advances in technology and the determination to maintain and develop pristine oceans may result in cruise ships liquefying leftover food in an industrial grinder. Cruise ships have an estimated food waste of around 30%, often called fish food.

In case of an overboard situation, the crew does not sort through the food waste and dump it overboard. They use two systems to treat food waste before it goes overboard: pulpers and biodigesters. Cruise ships are notorious polluters, dumping sewage, food waste, and harmful fuel waste into the oceans. U.S. law requires cruise ships to treat waste within about 3.5 miles of shore, but food waste is stored and sorted separately from non-perishable materials. Most of this waste is then pulverized or pureed into fish food. It is illegal to dump garbage overboard, and regulations available under MARPOL for the discharge of food waste, sewage, and fuel waste are readily available.