Case study detail
Man putting food waste into composting machine
Food waste composting at Communities and Local Government (CLG) and Government Office for London
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Sustainable Development Commission
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A food waste composting scheme was launched at Communities and Local Government’s two main London buildings – Ashdown House and Eland House, as well as at Government Office for London’s Riverwalk House, in January 2006.
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Overview
Description of the project
A food waste composting scheme was launched at Communities and Local Government’s two main London buildings – Ashdown House and Eland House, as well as at Government Office for London’s Riverwalk House, in January 2006.
The project was initiated following a physical waste audit, which found the general waste stream contained a high proportion of organic waste. The project’s key aim was to divert organic waste from the general waste stream (for incineration) to compost, to help the Department reduce its negative environmental impact and to help meet its SOGE waste and recycling targets.
MITIE, the Department’s facilities management company, identified an appropriate partner in East London Community Recycling Partnership (ELCRP) with whom to set up a three month pilot scheme. Food waste was separated in the kitchens and restaurants of all three buildings and collected weekly for off-site composting by ELCRP.
All food waste could be composted including cooked and uncooked fish and meat as well as other organic waste. The compostable material was treated by catering staff, by regularly spraying the waste in the restaurant food bins with Natural Pathogen and Odour Control (NPOC) liquid to begin a fermenting process, rather than the waste putrescing and attracting vermin. The waste was transferred daily from the kitchens and stored in the basement in clear plastic sacksinside kerb side bins with clip down lids. The project was monitored during the initial pilot project by weighing the separated organic waste each week.
The barriers
Catering staff buy-in was the greatest challenge. In many instances, there was a language barrier to overcome as many of the staff did not have English as their first language. Also many of the staff are temporary and only employed for short periods thus requiring regular training. Changing mindset to ensure separation and spraying of food waste in a high pressure kitchen environment that has not previously composted was difficult. Senior kitchen staff support was crucial to ensure the procedures were complied with and to ensure the training of new staff.
To ensure the scheme was successful, separation was made as convenient as possible for staff by placing numerous food waste bins throughout the kitchens. By providing regular training and guidance, and conducting regular bin audits, eventually catering staff were carefully separating the food waste. In one kitchen, greater resistance was encountered. This required a slightly different approach by assigning a bin to each kitchen staff member, and labelling it with their name. They then took ownership of each bin, thus ensuring that their own bin was not contaminated with non-compostables.
The outcomes and benefits
The three month pilot was so successful that the scheme has become a permanent waste disposal method within our Headquarter buildings, with 34 tonnes composted during a 15 month period between January 2006 and March 2007. The scheme has enabled the reduction of general waste collections, thereby not only more than offsetting the costs of the initiative, but also the carbon emissions associated with the additional food waste collections. The composting scheme has now also been extended to tea points to enable staff to compost any food waste generated at desk areas or in tea points.
A number of shops who dispose of waste in the waste stream of one building have also successfully joined the composting scheme, effectively separating their food waste. The compost has been used to enrich the green spaces around Hackney, as well as to fertilise plants within the Department’s buildings. Compost has also been provided to some staff and used to help enrich some traditional English varieties of apple which have been planted outside Government Office for London’s building. The initiative has also helped secure jobs at ELCRP.
This food waste composting scheme has been a great success providing a lasting sustainable solution to the Department’s organic waste arisings.
Key features
environmental assessment
governance
waste initiatives
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