Category Archives: Waste Stream

Abu Dhabi Does Green

I’ve got some good news and some bad news about Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates. First, the bad: Abu Dhabi’s resort buffets produce massive amounts of food waste. While this isn’t much different in Las Vegas or other buffet-laden destinations, it’s a problem. Without local food recovery groups, Abu Dhabi’s resort […]

May 5, 2008 | Also posted in International, Restaurant | Comments closed

Friday Buffet

In food-waste-to-energy news: If the state of California processed all of its 5.9 million tons of food waste by anaerobic digestion, it would produce enough energy to power 75 percent of the Bay Area. This according to an East Bay Municipal Utility District study. — — Staying in California, The California bill to allow hotel […]

May 2, 2008 | Also posted in Energy, Friday Buffet, Household | Comments closed

Watermelon Toss

Yesterday, I arrived at the grocery store just in time for a show. I pulled up as an employee was wheeling some trash and food (two different things) out to the dumpster. After tossing the clear bags of trash, the employee turned to the four watermelons in the cart. I sat in my car dumbfounded […]

April 29, 2008 | Also posted in Personal, Supermarket | Comments closed

Food as Fuel

Somewhere, Doc Brown is smiling. OK, OK, he’s a fictional character from Back to the Future, but still… If Metro Vancouver gets its way, it will soon build a plant to convert food waste to fuel. Instead of fueling Deloreans like Doc B did, the plant could power municipal vehicles. Apparently, this is done in […]

April 17, 2008 | Also posted in Energy, Technology | Comments closed

Seattle Slays

Bless those Seattlites. From where I stand, they’re way ahead of the curve: They recycle household food waste, or at least they will starting in 2009. They provide great advice on food waste, quoting excellent experts (scroll to the end). They recycle food at Mariners games. They recycle food at hospitals. About 30 miles down […]

March 27, 2008 | Also posted in Events, Food Recovery, Institutional | Comments closed

Talkin’ Trash

With college basketball’s season reaching its peak, it’s only fitting that we talk some trash. Or rubbish. In The Rubbish Diet, British blogger “Almost Mrs. Average” completed her eight-week challenge to reduce what she sends to the landfill. After composting and giving some items to her three-year-old for art projects, the family produced one item […]

March 17, 2008 | Also posted in Composting, Household | Comments closed

Studying Waste

A friend sent me this useful waste diversion presentation created by the Biodegradable Products Institute. The Power Point doc, which takes a bit to load, has some eye-opening statistics about how much food is in our trash. In slide six, we see that food scraps make up the largest portion of the waste stream. It’s […]

March 12, 2008 | Also posted in Composting, Stats | Comments closed

Irish Haste on Waste Reduction

Ireland’s EPA just weighed in with this discussion paper on how to reduce food and yard waste in landfills. Here’s a decent summary of the study, which suggested ten potential changes to keep food from rotting in landfills. Conspicuously absent was the suggestion: ‘Stop wasting so much food!’ The Irish study stems from the European […]

February 28, 2008 | Also posted in International | Comments closed

Where’s the Beef? In the Landfill

Not surprisingly, there’s been some fallout from the largest beef recall in U.S. history. You know, the one that didn’t really need to happen. Many retailers are frustrated at having to toss perfectly good food. Recently, Seattle-area landfills have started burying cases of meat that were at school cafeterias. A King County landfill received 230 […]

February 27, 2008 | Also posted in Food Safety, Processing Plants | Comments closed

Indoor Composting

The verdict is in on the NatureMill indoor composting system–not so hot. This review echoes the sentiment of Wasted Food reader Sandy who expressed her disappointment via comment. It’s a shame that the NatureMill doesn’t smell so hot, because I was hoping it’d be an answer for urban dwellers without composting space. The contraption has […]

February 26, 2008 | Also posted in Composting, Household | Comments closed