How to Turn Food Scraps into Garden Fertilizer without the Latest Tech?

Some astonishing numbers you should learn about your food waste

Over 400 pounds of food, 1/3  food we buy, is thrown out by an average family each year.

On a grant scale, 1/2 of of all food that is produced or consumed in the U.S. is discarded.

95% of the food waste are sent to the landfills, occupying 20% of the space.

20% of greenhouse gas emissions come from landfills where food waste and other organic materials are sent.

These figures mean that by simply tossing your food into the trash bin, you’re becoming one of the culprit of global warming. And don’t forget that with population keeps growing, more waste is coming. 

Whirpool Zera Food Recycler is here to help, but......

To solve this problem, Whirpool recently unveiled its latest innovation, Zera Food Recycler. 

Fitting alongside with most countertop, this white gadget promises to transform food scraps into ready-to-use, homemade fertilizer within 24 hours.

And the process is quite simple. What you need to do is to place food scraps inside the machine and press a button on the top of it. Then the unit will use oxygen, moisture, heat, a plant-based additive, and an agitator to speed up the decomposition process, resulting to usable fertilizer that could be collected in its bottom tray after 24 hours. It’s said that the fast process is partly due to the addition of coir (coconut husk) and baking soda.

While it sounds like a perfect solution, this gadget to be debuted in January 2017 is priced over $1200 per unit. Is it an affordable and home-scale solution to home waste problem? The say is left to the market and consumers.

To transform food scraps into fertilizer, you only need 3 simple steps!

Fortunately, neither do you need to wait until next year, nor to pay $1200 for a kitchen composter. What you need is a few simple tools and a little bit patience to begin your DIY composting project.

1. Collect Scraps with a Compost Bin in your Kitchen

Most of the food scraps in the kitchen can be composted ranging from fruit and vegetable wastes (both rinds and pulps), grains, coffee grounds, tea bags, old spices to anything made out of flour like bread and cookies.

But skip meat, fish and other diary products since they imbalance the nutrient-rich structure of other food and attract rodents.

X-chef Compost Bin with Built-in Filter

So collecting the right food is the first step to success. Start by getting yourself a compost bin in the kitchen! 

-Make sure you get the one that holds adequate amount and with built-in filter to cut down on smell.

-Aesthetic pleasing kind is better if you’d like to place it on your countertop.

2. Make the Compost Recipe

Next comes to mixing the compost ingredients. You can mix them in a food scrap bucket that is easy to attain in a local store, or invest in a stationary bin if you want accelerate the process.

-Cover the bottom with thick layer of soil and shredded paper

-Mix brown matter like twigs, shredded paper, wood chips and dry leaves since they help the food scraps to break down.

-Apply alternating layers of greens (food scraps) & browns and add some water because moderate moisture is required for the process.

-Line the lid with newspaper to cut down on odors and potential fruit flies.

3. Take Care of your Compost Pile

While daily care of the compost pile is nothing complex, it has a magic effect in speeding the process.

-Add material regularly to give the happy bacteria some fresh food to consume.

-Locate the pile in a sunny place because enough insulation can speed up the process.

-Turn the pile every week or two since frequent turning yields fast decomposition.

In a few months, you will be surprised to find that your finished product is a dark, crumbly soil that smells like fresh earth!

Making fertilizer with your own kitchen waste is the same as nurturing your own plants. Remember to be patient since magic takes time!