Anything that was once living can be composted. This includes food waste, organics, and materials that result from the storage, preparation, cooking, handling, selling, or serving of food. As more businesses and consumers focus on sustainability, composting plays an important role in reducing waste and sequestering carbon. When composting is concerned, it is important to understand the differences between composting at home and industrial composting.
Industrial Composting
Industrial composting is an actively managed process that defines both the environment and duration for the process (in an industrial composting facility, in less than 180 days, the same rate as natural materials – such as leaves and grass clippings). Certified compostable products are engineered to not disrupt the composting process. As microbes break down these and other organic materials, heat, water, carbon dioxide, and biomass are released and no plastic is left behind.
Industrial composting is an actively managed process where key factors are monitored to ensure effective and complete biodegradation. Composters monitor pH, carbon and nitrogen ratios, temperature, moisture levels, and more to maximize efficiency and quality and to ensure adherence with regulations.Industrial composting ensures complete biodegradation and is the most sustainable way to dispose of organic waste such as food scraps and yard waste.One of the main benefits of industrial composting is that it helps to divert organic waste, like yard trimmings and left-over food, away from landfills. This is important as untreated green waste will rot down and produce methane gas. Methane is a harmful greenhouse gas that contributes to climate change.
Home Composting
Home composting is a biological process during which naturally occurring microorganisms, bacteria and insects break down organic materials such as leaves, grass clippings and certain kitchen scraps into a soil-like product called compost. It is a form of recycling, a natural way of returning needed nutrients to the soil. By composting kitchen scraps and yard trimmings at home, you can conserve valuable landfill space normally used to dispose of this material and help reduce air emissions from the incinerator plants that burn garbage. In fact, if you compost on a continual basis, the volume of garbage you generate can be reduced by as much as 25%! Composting is practical, convenient and can be easier and less expensive than bagging these wastes and taking them to the landfill or transfer station.
By using compost you return organic matter and nutrients to the soil in a form readily useable to plants. Organic matter improves plant growth by helping to break heavy clay soils into a better texture, by adding water and nutrient-holding capacity to sandy soils, and by adding essential nutrients to any soil. Improving your soil is the first step toward improving the health of your plants. Healthy plants help clean our air and conserve our soil. If you have a garden, a lawn, shrubs, or even planter boxes, you have a use for compost.
The difference between Industrial composting and Home composting
Both forms of composting create a nutrient-rich compost at the end of the process. Industrial composting is able to sustain the temperature and stability of the compost more rigorously.
At the simplest level, home composting produces a nutrient-rich soil as a result of the breakdown of organic waste such as food scraps, grass clippings, leaves, and tea bags. This occurs over a period of months normally in a backyard compost barrel, or a home compost bins. But, the conditions and temperatures for home composting sadly will not break down PLA bioplastic products.
That’s where we turn to industrial composting – a multi-step, closely monitored composting process with measured inputs of water, air, as well as carbon and nitrogen-rich materials. There are many types of commercial composting – they all optimise each step of the decomposition process, by controlling condition like shredding material to the same size or controlling the temperature and oxygen levels. These measures ensure rapid biodegradation of the organic material to high quality, toxic-free compost.
Here are the results of a test comparing industrial compost with home compost
| Industrial Composting | Home Composting | |
| Time | 3-4months (longest:180days) | 3-13months(longest:12months) |
| Standard |
ISO 14855 |
|
| Temperature | 58±2℃ | 25±5℃ |
| Criterion | The absolute degradation rate＞90%；The relative degradation rate＞90% | |
However,composting at home is an excellent way to reduce waste and return carbon to the soil. However, home composting lacks the consistency and regulation of industrial composting facilities. Bioplastic packaging (even when combined with food waste) requires higher temperatures than can be achieved or sustained in a home compost setting. For large scale food scrap, bioplastics, and organics diversion, , industrial composting is the most sustainable and efficient end of life environment.
Feel free to discuss with William: williamchan@yitolibrary.com
Post time: Nov-22-2023