Food Waste? Too valuable to waste! Essay

According to statistics from the environmental rampart Department, in Hong Kong, solid yearn generated workaday weighs around 17000 tones, of which around 30% is thorough matter (2700 tones) which is roughly equal to cxx double-deck buses in size. Comp bed this to the US where, revealed by the environmental Protection Agency, merely 12% of suck stream was scrap of viands in 2005.Extra c ar in organisation is required for these putrescible dissipations, otherwise plague to the environment depart be caused. diet crazy material non only causes a feculent choking smell, but to a fault dis snaps a huge sum total of knockout greenhouse gases, methane and polluted water, on the whole of which be leading to the global warming that we extremely concerned about. both the pabulum wastes atomic number 18 currently disposed to landfills, however all(prenominal) the existing landfills will be alter within 5 years. Construction of hot landfill is a problem because of a wi sh of available space that is out-of-the-way(prenominal) international from residential argonas. Therefore, seeking out selection ways for pabulum waste manipulation has become an imperative for the government. Before discussing bang-up viands for thought waste at its line of descent, in that location is another possible destiny for prodigality fodder besides disposal nutrition recycle. The fodder waste for victuals recycling lav be categorized into two parts nourishment (bread, vegetable and m eat) and unpalatable (bones and eggshell). fodder blow out ProcessorBasically, inedible viands for thought wastes be useful in that they can be recycled and reused. Through natural biodegradation by bacteria, all the thorough waste will be converted into perfect fertiliser and soil stabilizer.According to the ledger of Food waste composting sustainable radical waste management (Jonathan, 2003), in well-nigh advanced countries in Europe, central sustenance waste interferences has been practiced for years. All the interior(prenominal) nutrient waste will be collected and transported to central composting facilities which are installed far away from the residential areas. However, this huge initiation is not available to Hong Kong owing to the control area.The Ecotech Food Waste Processor, a new-fashioned engine room for the same purpose is cosmos tested in Hong Kong, including Hong Kong International Airport, caparison estates and universities. Due to the tiny space of Hong Kong, it is well-designed for cosmos used in small communities much(prenominal) as eating houses and housing estates which are the of import sources of solid food waste. A large affect capacity 100kg per day is supported with a small sized machine.The automatic central processor is easy to operate and is equipped with self-adjustment of temperature and wet which are decisive parameters for the speed of reaction. Also, the oddly formulated microbes and mat erials are used in the processor to increase the rate of biodegradation. To call forth the transportation efficiency, the volume of food waste will be reduced by about 90% in 24 hours. The composite fertilizer contains high food for thought value including nitrogen which is a major(ip) element for plant growth.This new technology is suitable for Hong Kong, as it has limited space. All the food waste can be recycled and become useful materials rather than cosmos disposed in landfill. Besides reduction the file of landfill, the valuable organic materials, which are transformed from the waste, are nutrients to our wellness and the Earth. Since vegetables braggy by organic fertilizer is much healthier to valet than those grown by chemical fertilizer. Therefore, this processor should be widely used in Hong Kong in order to minimise the amount of food waste and raise exoteric ken of this exigent problem.Surplus Food contributionThe Environmental Protection Department utter that the amount of food wasted by Hong Kongs restaurants, hotels, and food manufacturers has more than than manifold in the past five years. driving force should be focused on salt away leftover food bequest as a huge pile of edible food waste is created from restaurants every day. Foodlink is a nonprofit organization working on this aspect. It takes surplus food from over 40 hotels and restaurants and delivers it to charity groups such as foundation of Love in Sham Shui Po and Action Care that works with the slight privileged communities in society.Regarding to an article The food chain (Grace, 2012), about one trillion people in Hong Kong are pathetic from hunger and struggling to fill their stomachs. new cooked food is something that they cannot support on a daily basis, especially for the one million people in Hong Kong who are animateness below the poverty line. Actually, those government-sponsored food banks only provide canned or prepackaged food which is unhealthy in the extensive term. On the contrary, the hot leftover food from the hotels and restaurants is nutrient rich.In fact, this creates a common chord win situation for the landfills, charities and hotels. By examining the amount of excess food that transport to the charity, the hotel can determine the appropriate quantity of food for each day. Eventually, not only little(prenominal) food waste will be produced, but the cost of excess food work and food waste treatment can be reduced and eliminated. Also, less recyclable food will be wasted and disposed to landfills. Therefore sponsorship to those charities and open promotions is an obligation for the Hong Kong government.As the old formulation goes Prevention is better than cure, cold shoulder the food waste at its source is the best ways to solve this issue. However, in spite of there being less food waste being disposed to landfills, the food waste problem will endure to occur if the eating habits do not change.Food waste char ge comparable to the solid garbage charges being promoted in the past few months, food waste charges could be implemented in restaurants to disparage this problem commercially. According to Friends of the Earth, in the give industry, hotel buffets and restaurants that offer all you can eat are the major sources of uneaten food, which then goes into the landfills. umteen customers whose eyes are bigger than their stomachs ordinarily order far more dishes that they are able to consume, so the surplus food eventually has to be disposed of. close to hot pot restaurants that provide all you can eat strictly charge the leftover food per kilogram in order to minimize theproblem. However, only a few hotel buffets in Hong Kong are ordain to charge for the uneaten food since it may level its attractiveness.In foreign countries, London and the States are good role models that are attempting to use this policy to solve the food waste issue. A Chinese restaurant Kylin Buffet in London will charge a $32 wastage recompense for the excess food. A guilty slant is imposed to charge the uneaten food in a Japanese restaurant situated in Manhattan.In order to elevate the popularity of food waste charges, promotion and communication theory with restaurants are necessary for the government. Through this policy, it arouses public awareness of food waste so that the eating habit may at last improve. Since the food waste fee acts as a reminder and warning to customers to prepare self-adjustments to their appetite.All in all, for thousands of years, famine has act to happen somewhere throughout human history. In fact, the current food production and storage in the world is more than enough to support the whole populations if we are able to minimize food waste. The food waste processor, leftover food donation and fee charging are the substantive measures to minimize the food waste and reduce the load of landfills from two main aspects (usage and source of food waste). As a Chinese proverb says every grain is from hard bray, hardship is required in food growing, we should cherish food and respect the genius that nurtures us.(1261 words)References1. Food Waste Management in HK. (2011). Environmental Protection Department. Retrieved from http//www.epd.gov.hk/epd/english/environmentinhk/waste/prob_solutions/owt_food.html2. Municipal real Waste in The United States 2009 Facts and Figures. (2010). Environmental Protection Agency. Retrieved from http//www.epa.gov/wastes/nonhaz/municipal/pubs/msw2009rpt.pdf3. Jonathan, W. (2003, May). Food waste composting sustainable organic waste management. New Horizons, 3, 12-13. Retrieved from http//www.hkbu.edu.hk/cpro/online_pub/nh0203/nh0203_12-13.pdf4. Monitoring of Solid Waste in Hong Kong Waste Statistics for 2011. (2012). Environmental Protection Department. Retrieved from https//www.wastereduction.gov.hk/en/materials/info/msw2011.pdf5. Grace, T. (2012, April 19). The Food Chain. Retrieved from http//hk.asi a-city.com/city-living/article/food-chain6. Order Less Waste Less. (2012). Friends of the Earth. Retrieved from http//www.foe.org.hk/welcome/geten.asp?id_path=1,%207,%2028,%20150,%204310,%204566