Meeting As4454 Standards: How Telford Smith Helps Customers Produce Cleaner Organics // Telford Smith

Oct 2025

Meeting As4454 Standards: How Telford Smith Helps Customers Produce Cleaner Organics

Australia’s compost and soil improvement industry relies on clear benchmarks to maintain trust and protect the environment. At the centre of this is AS4454-2012 — the Australian Standard for Composts, Soil Conditioners and Mulches. For processors handling food waste, green waste, or mixed organics, meeting this standard is essential for product acceptance, compliance, and market credibility.

What AS4454 Says About Contaminants

AS4454 sets strict limits for physical contaminants in organic material:

Rigid plastics, glass, metals (>2 mm): ≤ 0.5% dry weight
Flexible plastics / film (>5 mm): ≤ 0.05% dry weight
Stones and clay lumps (>5 mm): ≤ 5% dry weight

These figures are demanding. Even well-sorted streams often contain packaging and plastic film that can push outputs above allowable thresholds. Consistently staying under these limits requires the right technology.

The Push for Cleaner Organics

Although AS4454 hasn’t been formally updated since 2012, a review process is underway, and industry voices are calling for stricter rules on plastics — particularly microplastics. Customers, regulators, and end-markets are already expecting higher quality organics. Businesses that aim to only “just meet” the current requirements risk being caught out if thresholds tighten.

Green Creative Flexipure: Ahead of the Standard

Through our partnership with Green Creative, Telford Smith brings the Flexipure system to Australia — a solution built specifically to separate organics from contaminants at scale.

Performance that Exceeds AS4454

Flexipure isn’t just compliant; it consistently surpasses the contaminant limits set by AS4454:

Impurities in dry matter kept below 0.09% — far cleaner than the 0.5% and 0.05% thresholds.
Processes up to 25 m³ of organics per hour, supporting both medium and high-volume operations.
Energy consumption below 0.1 kWh/m³ and 0% additional water use, keeping operating costs and environmental impact low.
Integrated depackaging removes packaging from food waste during processing, cutting labour and extra steps.
Dedicated residue container ensures contaminants are captured and managed cleanly.
Plug & Play installation allows for quick integration into existing facilities without major infrastructure changes.
User-friendly control panel gives operators full oversight and the ability to fine-tune outputs.

With these features, Flexipure produces organics streams that not only meet AS4454 but also future-proof operations should regulations tighten around plastics and contamination.

More Than a Single Machine

For some processors, a single Flexipure unit may deliver everything required. In other cases, the best results come from a system approach. Telford Smith can design plants that combine:

RUNI screw compactors to depack and dewater food waste.
Zerma shredders and granulators for consistent material preparation.
Sesotec separation systems for an extra layer of contaminant control.

By integrating these technologies, operators gain complete lines that deliver consistent quality, minimal contamination, and compliance with both today’s and tomorrow’s standards.

Why This Matters for Processors

Failing to meet AS4454 can mean rejection, downgrading, or restrictions on where compost and soil products can be used. That leads to lost value and reputational risk. On the other hand, producing organics that exceed quality benchmarks opens doors to higher-value markets in agriculture, landscaping, and commercial supply.

Investing in proven systems now gives processors peace of mind, cost savings through energy efficiency, and confidence that their products will remain compliant as expectations evolve.

How Telford Smith Can Help

Telford Smith has decades of experience delivering machinery and complete plants for recycling and waste management. Our partnerships with Green Creative, RUNI, Zerma, and Sesotec mean we can design solutions that help processors achieve organics outputs that not only meet but surpass AS4454 requirements.

Whether you’re upgrading part of your line or building a new facility, we can help you stay ahead of industry standards with proven, future-ready equipment.