Imperial College works to reduce food waste

Food waste

Food waste, we're all guilty of it. It's estimated that the food we waste in Europe and the US could feed the world three times over, while a report released in 2010 by the Waste & Resources Action Programme (WRAP) found the food and drink supply chain generates more than 11 million tonnes of food waste and five million tonnes of packaging each year. In the UK, 8.3 million tonnes of food and drink are wasted each year, of which 5.3 million could have been consumed, according to Wrap, a government funded initiative. Reports also show that the cost of this waste is at least GBP£12 billion - that's the equivalent of GBP£480 for each household, or GBP£680 for families with children. So what are we doing about it?

Well, there is somewhere that is taking action: The Imperial College London have a new plan in place to reduce their food wastage.

A tonne of food waste, including 100 percent of the hot food waste collected from the College's three main restaurants, will be saved from landfill every week, due to their newly designed composting unit unveiled today.

The composter, which has been created using research from the College's Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering, will turn the waste from the South Kensington Campus's food outlets into compost used to enhance campus green spaces. This move will contribute towards the College's target of recycling 40 percent of all College waste during 2010.

CompPod to reduce food waste

The CompPod, which houses the composter, is a standalone structure the size of a portacabin and requires only electricity, water and drainage connections to operate. This design is a world first and means it can be transported to other College locations if required.

It contains all the equipment required for pre-treating and composting food waste, including a macerator machine to chop the waste into smaller pieces, apparatus for sterilising the utensils used to handle it, and a device to drain excess liquid from it.

As well as converting food waste to a green use through the compost system, the reduction of waste sent to landfill due to onsite composting reduces transportation costs and landfill charges. The college are currently projecting that the initial outlay for the CompPod of GBP£140,000 should be recouped within two years.

Professor Grimes, SITA and Royal Academy of Engineering Professor of Waste Management, said: "The collection and disposal of food waste presents a major problem in attempts to divert organic waste from landfill. Our research brings together fundamental chemical, biological and engineering principles to tackle this problem and it's been very satisfying to see our concept translate directly into a practical green solution here on our own campus. TheCompPod is a unique system for in-situ treatment of total food waste, delivering a business solution that contributes to the College's mission on sustainable waste management."

Imperial's Facilities Management Division worked in conjunction with the manufacturing and technology company IMC Ltd to develop the CompPod.

Imperial's other green activities include its StepChange campaign, officially launched in April this year, which aims to cut the College's carbon emissions by 20 percent by 2014, from the 2008-09 level. A carbon management plan is currently being developed by Imperial's Facilities Management Division in conjunction with the Carbon Trust which will set out how the College intends to achieve the cuts.

Existing energy saving initiatives already underway include metering systems to measure buildings' energy use, reducing unnecessary lighting through daylight sensors and using long-life low-power bulbs and introducing a College-wide mechanism to automatically drop computers into standby mode if they have not been used for 30 minutes.

Jodie Humphries

Jodie Humphries graduated from Bath Spa University with a BA Hons in Creative Writing in 2008. She has worked for GDS Publishing for the digital group since July 2009. She has previous experience with writing for the web, running her own website since April 2007.

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