Date How can our food waste grow more food and power your television and lights??? How can our food waste grow more food and power your television and lights??? April 2018 zerowastescotland.org.uk @zerowastescot

What food waste? The best way to manage waste is not to create it in the first place. But… No matter how carefully you plan and prepare food, there is inevitable waste. Fruit & Vegetable preparation waste Coffee grounds & tea bags / leaves Plate waste & Spoilage Of course the best way to manage waste is not to create it in the first place …. And this goes for food waste as well ….. by forward planning …… correct portioning ….. and storage. However …. there will always be unavoidable food waste …. such as fruit and veg peelings, coffee grounds & tea bags or leaves …. And occasionally …. plate waste or spoilage.

Your unavoidable food waste is valuable. The important thing now … is what you choose to do with this food waste … as it still has a value,

The food waste you can’t avoid, can have a second life… This food waste can have a second life….. It now becomes a potential energy source or fertiliser to help grow more food ….. But only if it is recycled.

Top tips for recycling food waste in homes This video will give you an idea of what we mean. Top tips for recycling food waste in homes

What happens to your food waste? There are 2 different places your food waste could go for processing: An In-Vessel Composting site, or An Anaerobic Digestion site Lets find out a bit more…. What happens to your food waste? If you have a food waste collection … there are 2 different places your food waste could go for processing Via an enclosed composting system specially designed for food and garden waste together or Via an anaerobic digestion site Lets find out a bit more …

Imagine that Anaerobic Digestion is just like a large cow Food goes in Fertiliser and gas come out Firstly, lets look at anaerobic digestion Think of it as being like a large cow …. With the tank being the cows stomach …… Food goes in and fertiliser and gas comes out. Inside the digester tank are millions of anaerobic bacteria that digest the food waste …. producing digestate …. The fertiliser …. And biogas.

Anaerobic Digestion What goes in? Food waste (commercial, household & retail) Farmyard manures / slurry Crops residues Like any animal an anaerobic digester requires a good balanced diet to survive. Food waste is perfect for this …. Full of energy …. and varied in its make up. Farmyard manures and slurries ….. and crop residues also are good additions to the mix.

Anaerobic Digestion What comes out? Digestate – a liquid fertiliser for agriculture. Benefits Returns nutrients to the soil Excellent fertiliser (rich in nitrogen) Renewable fertiliser not derived from fossil fuels Enables food to be grown more sustainably Recycles unavoidable food waste Digestate is a liquid fertiliser …. which is one of the outputs from the anaerobic digestion process. Unlike compost, digestate is very watery in its raw state …. like a thick gravy …. and it is an excellent fertiliser for agriculture … with many benefits. It returns many valuable nutrients to the soil It is particularly Rich in nitrogen …. which plants need to grow It is made from a renewable source ( like food waste) … not oil based …. which conventional agricultural fertilisers are Digestate enables food to be grown more sustainable Using recycled food waste

Anaerobic Digestion What comes out? Biogas, a mix of methane CH4 and carbon dioxide CO2 which can be used for: Heat and / or electricity Replacing fossil gas in the gas grid Vehicle fuel, even for a ferry …… The other output from the anaerobic digestion process is the biogas …. which has a high concentration of methane and can be used for many purposes Biogas can be: Burned in a boiler for heat Put through a specialist engine which produces electricity and heat Injected into the gas grid to replace gas from fossil sources Used as a vehicle fuel for most forms of transport from cars to lorries …. even a ferry.

How food waste is recycled. Anaerobic digestion. This video gives an overview of the anaerobic digestion process How food waste is recycled. Anaerobic digestion.

In-Vessel Composting What goes in? Garden waste – grass, leaves hedge trimmings & prunings Food waste from households or businesses (manufacturing, retailers & hospitality) The other processing option is via a specialist … enclosed composting unit, This process takes much less food waste, only 5 – 20% …. with the rest of the material being garden waste. This process is used for food waste that is collected in the same bin as the garden waste.

In-Vessel composting What comes out? Compost, an earth like product with a rough crumb texture and pleasant smell Benefits Excellent soil conditioner Returns valuable organic matter to the soil Sustainable - Not made from fossil fuels or peat Can be used to make a topsoil replacement Enables food to be grown more sustainably Recycles unavoidable food waste What comes out from this process is compost, but not the sort you would buy from the local garden centre, this is much more nutrient rich ….. a more concentrated form of compost if you like …. But it can be used as an ingredient in bagged compost though. This compost is an excellent soil conditioner and returns valuable organic matter back to agricultural soil where it is very much needed Its is also sustainable as it is not made from unsustainable sources such as peat Can be used to make a topsoil replacement Allows food waste to be recycled …. to help grow more food.

How food waste is recycled. In-Vessel composting. This video gives an overall view of this composting process How food waste is recycled. In-Vessel composting.

What shouldn’t go in? Remember, compost and anaerobic digestate are used to grow food for humans and animals. Householder Check with your local council for a list of what can and cannot go into your food waste collection – be sure everyone in the household knows. Always remove food from its packaging. Commercial & Industrial Check with your food waste collector on what can and cannot go into your food waste collection and how it should be presented for collection – train staff accordingly & regularly. When recycling your food waste via your food waste collection …. it is really important to remember that this is going to be used on agricultural land ….. to grow more food for humans and animals. As such it is essential to ensure that only food waste goes into the collection ….. Absolutely no packaging such as cardboard, cans, plastics or glass. Please ensure you follow the guidelines from your local authority, if you are a householder …. or your waste collector if you are a business. And ensure everyone in your household or business knows and follows these guideline as well.

About Zero Waste Scotland We exist to create a society where resources are valued and nothing is wasted. Our goal is to help Scotland realise the economic, environmental and social benefits of making best use of the world’s limited natural resources. In 2010, only 12% of households had food waste collections, now over 75% of all households in Scotland have collections Scotland’s overall recycling rate has increased from just 4% to 43% in the past 10 years --- but we need to do more

Zero Waste Scotland are here to help Zero Waste Scotland exists to create a society where resources are valued and nothing is wasted. Resource Efficient Scotland, a programme of Zero Waste Scotland, offers food waste audits to small and medium sized food and drink organisations to help prevent waste. Call 0808 808 2268 or email foodanddrink@resourceefficientscotland.com Love Food Hate Waste – a consumer campaign to help reduce home food waste.