Acquisitions (Details) $ in Thousands				1 Months Ended	3 Months Ended			9 Months Ended
	Aug. 01, 2022 USD ($) facilities	Aug. 01, 2022 BRL (R$)	May 02, 2022 USD ($) facilities	Feb. 28, 2022 USD ($)	Oct. 01, 2022 USD ($)	Jul. 02, 2022 USD ($)	Oct. 02, 2021 USD ($)	Oct. 01, 2022 USD ($)	Oct. 02, 2021 USD ($)	Aug. 01, 2022 BRL (R$) facilities	Feb. 25, 2022 USD ($)	Jan. 01, 2022 USD ($)
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Acquisition and integration costs					$ 4,503		$ 0	$ 13,634	$ 0
Net sales					1,747,599		1,185,916	4,764,121	3,431,301
Net income attributable to Darling					191,081		$ 146,812	581,130	$ 495,160
Goodwill					1,900,267			1,900,267				$ 1,219,116
Senior Secured Facilities | Term A-1 Facility
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Line of credit outstanding					400,000			400,000
Senior Secured Facilities | Term A-2 Facility
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Line of credit outstanding					500,000			500,000
Senior Secured Facilities | Revolving Credit Facility
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Line of credit outstanding					515,000			515,000
FASA Group
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Property, plant and equipment	$ 142,931
Other noncurrent liabilities	$ (503)
Acquired Finite-lived Intangible Assets, Weighted Average Useful Life	11 years 6 months	11 years 6 months
Acquisition and integration costs					300			2,400
Payments to Acquire Businesses, Gross	$ 562,600	R$ 2,900,000,000
Business Combination, Number of Facilities Acquired | facilities	14									14
Net sales					50,700			50,700
Net income attributable to Darling					(7,300)			(7,300)
Business Combination, Number of Facilities Acquired Under Construction | facilities	2									2
Business Combination, Contingent Consideration Arrangements, Range of Outcomes, Value, Low | R$										R$ 0
Business Combination, Contingent Consideration Arrangements, Range of Outcomes, Value, High | R$										1,000,000,000
Business Combination, Contingent Consideration, Liability	$ 168,100									R$ 867,500,000
Business Combination, Contingent Consideration Arrangements, Range of Outcomes, Future Earnings Growth Period	3 years	3 years
Goodwill	$ 400,504
FASA Group | Collection Routes [Member]
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Business Combination, Recognized Identifiable Assets Acquired and Liabilities Assumed, Finite-Lived Intangibles	$ 150,200
Acquired Finite-lived Intangible Assets, Weighted Average Useful Life	12 years	12 years
FASA Group | Trade Names [Member]
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Business Combination, Recognized Identifiable Assets Acquired and Liabilities Assumed, Finite-Lived Intangibles	$ 11,000
Acquired Finite-lived Intangible Assets, Weighted Average Useful Life	5 years	5 years
Valley Proteins
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Property, plant and equipment			$ 409,405
Other noncurrent liabilities			$ (19,436)
Acquired Finite-lived Intangible Assets, Weighted Average Useful Life			15 years
Acquisition and integration costs					100			5,000
Payments to Acquire Businesses, Gross			$ 1,177,000
Business Combination, Number of Facilities Acquired | facilities			18
Business Combination, Purchase Price Adjustments					6,000
Net sales					235,400			399,700
Net income attributable to Darling					$ (15,400)			$ (14,900)
Goodwill			$ 355,141
Valley Proteins | Collection Routes [Member]
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Business Combination, Recognized Identifiable Assets Acquired and Liabilities Assumed, Finite-Lived Intangibles			$ 292,100
Acquired Finite-lived Intangible Assets, Weighted Average Useful Life			15 years
Valley Proteins | Permits [Member]
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Business Combination, Recognized Identifiable Assets Acquired and Liabilities Assumed, Finite-Lived Intangibles			$ 97,100
Acquired Finite-lived Intangible Assets, Weighted Average Useful Life			15 years
Group Op de Beeck
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Business Acquisition, Price of Acquisition											$ 91,700
Business combination, consideration transferred				$ 71,300		$ 75,500
Property, plant and equipment											28,100
Business Combination, Recognized Identifiable Assets Acquired and Liabilities Assumed, Finite-Lived Intangibles											27,200
Other noncurrent liabilities											(9,400)
Acquired Finite-lived Intangible Assets, Weighted Average Useful Life				15 years
Business Combination, Purchase Price Adjustments						$ 4,200
Goodwill											$ 29,600