Multiple entities partner to divert food scrap waste from landfills and create nutrient-rich compost for local farms.

By Kevin Bates

The statistics surrounding food waste in the U.S. can only be described as staggering. More than 30 percent of the food produced for human consumption in the U.S., valued at $162 billion annually, is not eaten. Each year, the U.S. spends $218 billion growing, processing, transporting and disposing of it. The fact that so much uneaten food is piling up in landfills is a hot topic among those concerned with the reality of feeding the country’s growing population.

According to the U.S. EPA, in 2010, more than 30 million tons of food scraps ended up in landfills and incinerators in the U.S. Only four percent of these food scraps were recovered through composting efforts. Yet food scrap composting is believed to be one of the most sustainable ways of achieving two goals: decreasing the amount of commercial solid, organic matter in landfills and creating more nutrient-rich soils in which to grow food for expanding populations.

Space to grow food is of increasing concern. At the present growth rate of 1.1 percent per year, the U.S. population will double to about 560 million in the next 60 years or so if current immigration trends continue. Each year, 3 million people are added to the U.S. population, further straining food production systems already facing drastic decreases of arable land.

Of the nearly 470 million acres of arable land that are now in cultivation in the U.S., more than one million acres are lost each year for urbanization, transportation networks and industrial expansion. Approximately two million acres of prime cropland are lost annually by erosion, salinization and water logging. If present population growth and other trends continue, over the next 60 years, both degradation and urbanization will diminish our arable land base from 470 million acres to 350 million acres.

Recycling at the Source

Resource recovery efforts specifically targeted at eliminating waste from food scraps are among the innovative solutions aimed at achieving sustainability for growing populations. Such is the case in California, where the Jacobs & Cushman San Diego Food Bank—the largest hunger relief organization in San Diego County—put itself on the map by acting ahead of a new California law, AB 1826, that requires organizations to recycle their organic waste and setting a goal of achieving zero landfilled food waste. “Organic waste” is defined as food waste, green waste, landscape and pruning waste, nonhazardous wood waste and food-soiled paper waste that is mixed in with food waste.

The food bank achieved its goal by partnering with New Jersey-based FOR Solutions, who in turn partnered with California-based JWC Environmental. The results of the three-way partnership are far reaching.

Primed for Debris Reduction

Annually, the food bank receives more than 23 million pounds of food and serves, on average, 370,000 people per month in San Diego County. Twent- eight thousand of those helped are low-income military personnel and their dependents. Five hundred thousand pounds of what is received often cannot be distributed due to expiration dates and requires disposal. With FOR Solution’s patented aerobic in-vessel rotary drum composting system, which includes JWC’s 3-SHRED waste grinder that breaks down food scraps to a size necessary for accelerated composting, 2,000 pounds of food waste per day is recycled and made into nutrient-rich compost used on local San Diego farms. The food bank’s improved environmental footprint and substantial savings on hauling and tipping fees are among additional benefits.

Composting systems, capable of processing between 2,500 and 40,000 pounds of discarded uneaten food per week, can be found in institutional settings such as colleges and universities and correctional facilities and prisons; commercial locations such as hotels and conference centers, cruise ships, amusement parks and sports stadiums; and municipal facilities such as wastewater treatment plants and airports. This is the first time the system has been installed at a food bank.

The same can be said for JWC’s grinder. FOR Solutions’ co-founder and ecologist Nick Smith-Sebasto was conducting due diligence of shredders online and came across the one ultimately chosen for the food bank. The initial composting system’s prototype used a competitor’s grinder, but Smith-Sebasto was intrigued by the muffin monster’s features and reputation in the market. JWC’s proven reputation assuaged Smith-Sebasto’s concerns over choosing a product that was not in the prototype, and he soon found that he made the right decision.

JWC’s close proximity to the food bank was an added bonus and proved immediately beneficial. JWC was able to support the start-up commissioning of the composting system and work through any initial challenges. A careful assessment of the first run indicated that the shredder’s tooth pattern was not optimal for the materials being shredded. JWC engineers provided an alternate tooth pattern and reconfigured the cutters to be more effective. When dealing with food waste, tailoring grinder systems to address feedstock variations is fairly common.

Smith-Sebasto was thrilled with JWC’s responsiveness and solution. He intends to use JWC Environmental technology in the future. Currently, multiple sales are pending and, without a doubt, those sales will include a 3-series grinder in various sizes.

The pipeline of sales is unexpected and ironic. When Smith-Sebasto first designed the system, he did not intend to commercialize it. It was simply something he created as an authentic way to make the world a better place after becoming aware of peak phosphorus shortages, over-fished waterways and fertility-challenged land.

Full-Circle Fertilizing

According to a detailed projection authored by two Australian researchers, Steve Mohr and Geoffrey Evans, world phosphate rock production will most likely peak in 2027—10 years from now. Without ample supplies of phosphorus—more than 80 percent of which is produced for use in fertilizers to assist in crop production and results in increased yields of up to 50 percent—it will be difficult to provide sufficient food for a world population expected to reach 9.5 billion by 2050. As a finite resource, phosphorus cannot be substituted for agricultural uses.

FOR Solutions’ system solves the food scraps management issues many industries face. Composting food scraps in a variety of industries leads to new revenue opportunities, furthers sustainability efforts, and reduces greenhouse gas emissions. The nutrient-dense food scraps turned compost is clean, efficient, safe, economical and virtually odor- and pest-free.

An example of how food scraps turned compost—a process Smith-Sebasto fondly refers to as “reconciliation, resilience and restoration”—can benefit growing populations is seen in his home base of Newark, NJ. Rather than transporting food scraps to landfills, make nutrient-rich compost to return vitality to the soil and make the 2,000 acres of abandoned lots into food oases. Envision food left over at local restaurants, schools and other institutions composted and used to grow more food. Instead of a tomato traveling 1,500 miles before it goes in your mouth, why not grow it locally on fertile soil restored with food scrap compost?

Kevin Bates is the Global Marketing Director for JWC Environmental (Santa Ana, CA). He can be reached at [email protected].

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