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Composting — A Solution for Food Waste |
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by Soyeon Cho | 24-12-2018 02:36
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Food waste is a serious issue around the world today. It comes from not only the leftovers on people’s plates but also the unsold and unprocessed produce going to the landfills to decompose and release polluting chemicals into the air, water, and soil. Yet South Korea is an interesting case regarding food waste disposal, given its system of weighted food waste. This problem is connected to soil because the decomposition of food waste can cause harmful bacteria to pollute the waterways and the soil, not to mention the odors from these chemical reactions. Furthermore, food waste can result in the emission of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide and methane (depending on the accessibility of oxygen), contributing to phenomena like climate change In South Korea, when people want to dispose of food waste, they need to buy different waste bags corresponding to the weight of the food waste (as well as general waste) and dispose of the filled food waste bags in machine chutes, which process it for animal feed and energy. This system is sustainable compared to the regulations of many other countries, as it provides incentives for regular consumers to reduce the amount of food waste to decrease the costs of buying the waste bags. However, this system is not perfect, as it yields gas emissions and adds to the costs burdened by society of already accumulating waste disposal. Additionally, it does not fully account for the food waste from the production of crops and food products, not providing enough of an incentive for large effects. Therefore, a solution to food waste disposal is composting. People can implement this solution in their homes, workplaces, and factories while providing the agricultural sector with sustainable fertilizer. There are different types of composting, such as aerobic composting, anaerobic composting, in-vessel composting, and vermicomposting (DKMM). Aerated composting involves aerating the food waste through either mechanical or manual ways from time to time to allow oxygen to help decompose the organic material. Anaerboic composting, on the other hand, involves limiting the amount of oxygen reacting with the food waste by keeping the organic materials “in a closed container with lots of solid saturating a slurry” (Hepperly) The main benefit of composting is that, according to Cowan, compost bins can help decompose organic materials into fertilizer (to be used by farmers) and sustainably reuse the waste for the benefit of the society (which ends up consuming the crops grown by reused food). Because people can set up household composting systems in their gardens and even in their apartments, compost bins will be able to manage food waste from food scraps and yard trimmings while reducing the amount of pollution caused by the disposal of organic waste. The solution of composting has been brought to light partly in the face of the sustainability movement and the rise of concerns about South Korea’s waste being produced and having less options to go after countries like China have closed their ports for imported waste, and also in the face of the importance of soil as an environment. December 5th was ‘World Soil Day’, meaning the promotion of composting would help celebrate the importance of clean, preserved soil providing the foundation for living beings and ecosystems. In connection with the benefits of composting, I have led efforts in the past to promote composting in our school through activities such as assembly presentations, videos, and posters to raise awareness about food waste and interactive competitions for grade levels to get motivation for decreasing their leftover food waste. To sum up, we should all try to promote composting considering its benefits for the land and Earth — afterward, we might be able to set a more sustainable future! Cowan, Shannon. “Composting.” Eartheasy Guides & Articles, Eartheasy, learn.eartheasy.com/guides/composting/. Hepperly, Paul Reed. “Aerobic vs. Anaerobic Composting.” ResearchGate, ResearchGate, 2016, www.researchgate.net/post/What_is_the_difference_between_the_results_of_aerobic_and_anaerobic_composting. “Types of Composting.” Delaware Knox Marion Morrow Solid Waste District, Delaware Knox Marion Morrow Solid Waste District, www.dkmm.org/types-of-composting. |
 
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5 Comments
Hello Soyeon, another good report to think about the importance of composting in modern society.
There are a lot of food materials around the world : 2.2 times a whole population in the world, but there are still a lot of famine and dying people due to lack of food resources. Taking this into account, food waste itself is a bit like necessary evil that we have to keep it in our minds as we loose them after our meals and cooking time. As days have gone and changed, our current technologies have improved well so far and I do think it is now time for us to manage food waste a bit better off than the past and approach toward the final goal : reducing food waste and improving better management system with real-time data set basis (like IoT or something).
Thanks for reminding us of this issue and problem and I think many regional ambassadors should have learned or looked out for finding out what kind of food waste management system that South Korea currently has :)
Posted 28-12-2018 23:42
Hello Soyeon
Food waste is something that needs a bit more improvement in its strategy as this not only causes pollution but in the matter that food itself is a resource that shows imbalanced distribution. The best way would be to ultimately reduce the amount of waste produced by better management and the modification of buying habits. And for those ineliminable wastes, composting methods will truly be of great help.
As our ambassadors had written many fascinating reports on the methods of composting, it would be nice for us to actually implement those methods!
Thanks for the report :)
Posted 27-12-2018 23:59
I have recently read about a village in Japan with no pollution and they did follow the way of composting for their left over food.
With the wprld facing the problem of food insecurity, we must try not to waste any food any food as much as possible. Although there are certain portion of food that isnot edible. Those wasted food must be recycled by composting.
In my previous report, i had mentioned about the different types of composting and converting waste into compost. I hope you had read that report too. Composting not only reduces environment pollution, but also recycles wastes into the nutrient for the soil.
Thank you for your report Soyeon.
Wishing you a happy and prosperous New Year and keep writing great reports :) :)
Posted 27-12-2018 05:01
Hello, Soyeon
Namaste from Nepal
Hope you are fine and healthy
Merry Christmas
In My ECPAC campaign i had conducted food waste awareness campaign, and this is one of the best way to recover the wasted food, next is we can give kitchen waste to livestock,
Thank You for the Report
Keep Writing :)
Posted 24-12-2018 21:40
Hi Soyeon!
Festive Greetings this Christmas Eve!
It has been a growing problem that food waste has increasingly been a factor in air and soil pollution. Amids China closing it's ports, it is pretty clear that more recycling infrastructure needs to be built because recycling companies refusing to take in more waste does not lead to a cleaner environment, it just worsens the load on landfills and promotes pollution.
Composting is a practical yet very realistic since it keeps the welfare of soil and food production into special regard. Families can really benefit from composting, not only will the guilt of throwing food away vanish, but they will be able to growth their own healthy vegetables.
Very interesting report update!
Thank you for reporting Soyeon!
Yours sincerely
R.
Posted 24-12-2018 14:03