UK SHOUT What happens to our collected food waste?

UK SHOUT What happens to our collected food waste?

By Chris Elliott…..

So like other people, I save my food scraps, etc., and put them in a little grey caddie that I put out for weekly collections by Peterborough Council, and I  found an interesting leaflet about food waste collections at the Paston Farm Community Centre, so I asked my friendly AI advisor for more information, which was given below.  

Peterborough City Council, in partnership with Aragon Direct Services, collects food waste weekly using grey caddies and puts it to good use in two key ways:

♻️ What Happens to the Food Waste?

• Electricity Generation: The collected food waste is processed to generate electricity for the city, helping reduce reliance on fossil fuels.
• Fertiliser Production: After energy extraction, the remaining material is turned into fertiliser, contributing to sustainable agriculture.

🏘️ Expansion Plans

• Flats Inclusion by 2026: The council is rolling out food waste recycling to all flats in Peterborough by March 2026, in line with government regulations.
• Current Progress: As of March 2025, 1,200 flats have received bins, with a target of 15,000 over the next year.

🛍️ Food Waste Bags

• Temporary Shortages: There have been occasional shortages of council-issued food caddy bags, but residents are encouraged to use any small bag in the meantime.

How is electricity generated from food waste?

Electricity from food waste is typically generated through a process called anaerobic digestion, though other methods like biomass gasification and microbial fuel cells are also emerging. Here’s how it works:

⚙️ Anaerobic Digestion (Most Common Method)

This is the method most UK councils—including Peterborough—use:

• Step 1: Collection & Preprocessing
  • Food waste is collected and sorted to remove contaminants like plastic or metal.
  • It’s then shredded and mixed into a slurry.
• Step 2: Digestion
  • The slurry is placed in sealed tanks called anaerobic digesters.
  • Microorganisms break down the organic matter in the absence of oxygen.
• Step 3: Biogas Production
  • This process produces biogas, mainly composed of methane and carbon dioxide.
  • The methane is captured and used to generate electricity and heat via combined heat and power (CHP) units.
• Step 4: Fertiliser Creation
  • The leftover digestate is nutrient-rich and used as agricultural fertiliser.

🔥 Biomass Gasification (Emerging Tech)

• Food waste is heated with limited oxygen to produce syngas (a mix of hydrogen, methane, CO, and CO₂).
• Syngas can be burned to generate electricity or refined into biofuels.
• This method is efficient and considered carbon-neutral.

⚡ Microbial Fuel Cells (Experimental)

• Microbes directly convert chemical energy in food waste into electricity.

Still in research stages but promising for small-scale or niche applications

Foe more information of local events go to Paston Farm Community Centre

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