Every year the UK wastes over 7 million tons of food. What can we do about it? The maxim is “Reduce – Recyle – Reuse”. We can reduce the amount of food we buy by keeping an eye on sell by dates, planning meals and freezing. Some items can be reused as leftovers or as pet food. Reduction was rumoured to be one of the origins of charcuterie and was charged to the garde manger to make what he could of scraps or waste. Once all these options are covered there is either the land fill or recycling left. The good news is that nearly all food can be recycled or broken down naturally in the garden.
The tradition view of composting is the bin or heap in the garden. These are great for receiving garden waste and veg cuttings but after that your other food waste can be used elsewhere. If the compost heap can be thought of as two types of waste, green and brown then it becomes easier to get to grips with making best use. Green waste is quick decomposing and often becomes mushy. Brown waste is slow to rot and retains a lot of structure. Both of these together, almost in a lasagne type build of thin layers of each, form the optimum mix. The green encourages the brown to break down and the brown prevents it going gooey. Typically this would be fresh grass trimmings and leaves / stems. Much of your kitchen waste would be classed as green. What is left over should be crumbly fresh compost.
Other options are available and pretty much specific to food composting. First is the wormery. Basically a layered set of trays with small holes in the bottom of each. The waste eventually turns to worm compost which is great for potting and a liquid which, when diluted down, works as a top feed for plants. Second there is the bokashi bin. Food is put into the bin in one inch layers and then covered in a thin layer of treated bran. The food is pickled for want of a better word. Once full and then fermented, the contents can be dug into the general garden or added to your main compost heap. A liquid is produced at all times which can be used as a diluted feed or poured down drains to neutralise odour producing bacteria.
There are other options out there and these will be covered in the next few days as well as a more in depth look at wormeries and bokashi.
