What Happens to Recycled Food Waste?

Each year, households in the UK throw away millions of tonnes of food waste, with much of it ending up in landfill. But what happens when food waste is recycled properly? For businesses and Holiday home owners across Cornwall, understanding this process is important when making sustainable choices with your food waste. 

Why Should Food Waste Be Recycled?

When food waste is sent to landfills, it will eventually break down and release methane, a potent greenhouse gas. Methane is a main factor contributing to climate change and air pollution, due to its heat-trapping properties.

By properly recycling your food waste, you will reduce methane emissions and conserve resources used to dispose of your food waste. The methane gas collected from your recycled food waste is harvested and used as a renewable energy source, even being turned into electricity in power plants. 

The Food Waste Journey Explained

At Cornwall Waste Care, we collect your food waste and transport it to a specialist processing facility in Holsworthy. Once there, the food waste is transferred to an anaerobic digester. The food waste then undergoes anaerobic digestion, a natural process where microorganisms break down the organic matter in the absence of oxygen.

This process generates methane gas, which is extracted, cleaned and injected into the national gas or can be turned into electricity in power plants. 

This is done by burning the methane produced to heat up water, which then creates steam. The steam then spins a turbine, which is connected to a generator, thus producing electricity. 

The remaining food waste residue, called digestate, is then processed into nutrient-rich, organic bio-fertiliser, which is returned or sold to local farmland, completing the sustainable cycle loop. 

In Cornwall, this part of the process plays a vital role in keeping our landscapes green.

Make a Difference with Cornwall Waste Care

If you run a cafe restaurant or your business deals with food waste, it is important that it is dealt with correctly. At Cornwall Waste Care, we offer both flexible and reliable collections, available on a regular or one-off basis.

As explained in the food waste journey, keeping your food waste separate is important for sustainability, with impacts on local gas, electricity, and fertiliser for farmers in your area. 

Join our mission for a cleaner, waste-efficient Cornwall and West Devon today by contacting us here to learn more about our food waste collection.