do you want to know how to make homemade compost in a restaurant to make use of your organic waste and get great benefits? This is a sustainable strategy for using your food waste such as fruit, eggshells, vegetables, etc. In this way, you contribute to the care of the environment from your business while saving money on compost and fertilisers.
Moreover, it is a great opportunity to spread your values of respect for nature and responsible consumption to the community. For these reasons, today at Greenuso we will show you step by step how to implement composting in a simple and effective way so that you can generate your own compost with your restaurant’s waste. Sounds interesting to you, then read on!
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Homemade compost: What is it?
It is a nutrient-rich natural fertiliser that you can use to care for your restaurant’s garden or orchard. This is achieved through the transformation of organic matter by microorganisms such as fungi and bacteria. In this sense, it is presented as an option that is much more respectful of nature by dispensing with fertilisers and chemicals.
Therefore, you help to close the cycle of organic matter to give back to the earth its richness. And you contribute to reducing pollution by preventing waste from being incinerated or ending up in local landfills.
Moreover, you replace the use of pesticides, which have a negative impact onCO2 emissions. This ensures smart management of biodegradable waste, to provide social, environmental and economic well-being in your community.
What you should know before making homemade compost from your restaurant waste
As you have seen, it is possible to compost household food waste, but what do you need to know to make the most of the process? We explain it to you:
what tools do you need?
To start with, you can make your compost using a prefabricated composter. This structure will allow you to pile organic waste in different layers, and to do the maintenance when required.
You can get them in wood, grid or plastic and in different dimensions so that you can adapt them to your catering business. However, we recommend you to make your own sustainable version for best results.
Don’t forget to buy some tools such as pruning shears, sieve and rake to periodically move the layers of your compost. This will make the procedure much easier for you.
Types of waste you can include
The selection of waste is one of the most important issues to achieve successful results in this work. In this regard, homemade compost can include the following organic waste:
- Flowers.
- Pruning waste.
- Fruits.
- Plants.
- Cork stoppers.
- Vegetable waste.
- Eggshells.
- Kitchen paper.
- Oils.
- Manure.
- Straw
- Coffee grounds.
On the other hand, you should not include the following waste in your composter:
- Bones.
- Fish waste
- Illustrated magazines.
- Ashes.
- Meat.
- Faeces of domestic animals.
- And other non-organic materials.
how to group your organic waste?
The idea is to pile your waste in layers inside the composter. However, you should sort this organic waste by placing wet, nitrogen-rich materials such as fruits and vegetables on one side and dry items such as cardboard, twigs and branches on the other side. And on the other hand, dry items such as cardboard, branches and dry leaves, which contain high levels of carbon.
In this way you can dose the quantities of each material that you want to incorporate into your composter. The best ratio is 1 part dry waste to 2 parts other materials to control your moisture levels.
Avoid getting the wrong combination of these two groups in your compost, as you run the risk of stalling the process. It is best to achieve a balance of carbon and nitrogen adding materials to give you the best yield. To achieve this, it is important that you regularly monitor the moisture of the mixture at different levels.
how to make homemade compost from organic waste?
If you are wondering how to make compost from vegetable waste, don’t worry. Here are the steps to follow:
1. Build a base with sufficient ventilation
The first level of your composter should have some branches intertwined with similar materials to ensure air circulation. Then pile up your waste mixed with pre-finished compost to inoculate micro-organisms.
A good idea is to have some manure to reinforce the decomposition of the material. In addition, it is important to remember that the contents of the compost must be continuously exposed to oxygen to ensure the desired effect.
2. Add your organic waste and stir constantly
You should now add your waste periodically, ensuring a constant and progressive flow of materials. Keep in mind that the smaller your waste, the better the bacteria and fungi will work within your compost.
On the other hand, you must guard your composter against sudden changes in environmental conditions and remove materials for aeration. This is the key to an accelerated and efficient rate. For these are decomposing organisms that need to breathe so that fermentation does not occur due to lack of air.
Certainly, problems at this stage are generated by poor aeration of the composter, as its processes are aerobic. Therefore, if the waste starts to produce bad smells it is an indicator that there are flaws in your procedures.
3. Water your composter regularly
In order to obtain the long-awaited homemade fertiliser, your compost requires an optimal amount of moisture. Therefore, it is essential that you water your organic waste without saturating the container with water.
And don’t forget that the liquid must penetrate the different levels that you add to your compost box.
4. Collect your compost
6 to 8 months after starting your sustainable project, you should collect your homemade compost. To do this, tilt your composter properly to collect the product from the bottom.
You will know that it is at its optimum moment, because you will notice a pleasant aroma of forest soil. And finally, allow it to rest for 5 days to apply this ecological compost in your vegetable garden or restaurant garden.
Benefits of making homemade compost in your restaurant
By making your own homemade compost, you will enjoy the following benefits:
- Improves air quality: Urban waste is harmful to nature, as it increasesCO2 emissions. Composting reduces the problems associated with burning rubbish such as ash, smoke and toxic products.
- It prevents soil erosion: Compost has positive effects on the chemical, physical and biological characteristics of the soil. This is because it helps to improve its structure and increases its capacity to hold moisture and gas exchange.
- It can be used as an insecticide: Compost has properties that allow it to be used to control pests such as tomato blight. It also gives plants greater resistance to certain spores.
- Promotes biodiversity: The transformation of waste into compost is achieved through decomposition. This process involves micro-organisms, earthworms and bacteria which, when they die, are transformed back into raw materials for the soil.
- It reduces the use of fossil fuels: When compost is created on an industrial scale, machines are used that use petroleum derivatives. In contrast, with organic compost, no motor vehicles and the like are needed.
We have concluded this publication on how to make homemade compost in your restaurant to make use of organic waste. We hope that you will develop this project to enhance your sustainable actions and make your desire to care for the environment known
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