{"id":22625,"date":"2021-08-17T14:37:21","date_gmt":"2021-08-17T19:37:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cf.iisd.net\/ela\/?p=22625"},"modified":"2023-09-25T13:54:11","modified_gmt":"2023-09-25T18:54:11","slug":"this-is-how-you-turn-food-waste-into-locally-grown-produce","status":"publish","type":"blog","link":"https:\/\/www.iisd.org\/ela\/blog\/this-is-how-you-turn-food-waste-into-locally-grown-produce\/","title":{"rendered":"This Is How You Turn Food Waste into Locally Grown Produce"},"content":{"rendered":"\r\n

The field season at IISD Experimental Lakes Area is in full swing, and\u2014in true IISD-ELA style\u2014we\u2019re trying something different; a new experiment, this time focusing on food-waste management!<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

This year, instead of sending our food waste to the landfill, we\u2019ve teamed up with the Harvest Kenora Collective<\/a> to put our waste to use and increase food resiliency in Kenora at the same time!<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

Much Ado About Bokashi<\/strong><\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

This season at IISD ELA, we are turning our food waste into “bokashi<\/a>,” a high-quality garden amendment. The Harvest Kenora Collective is helping us toward sustainability by burying our bokashi in local gardens to boost soil quality and improve garden productivity \u2014a win-win that helps us reduce our waste and allows us to contribute to a more sustainable and resilient local food system!<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

Bokashi is a term used to describe the process of using Lactobacillus <\/em>spp. bacteria (the same bacteria used to make yogurt, kimchi, sauerkraut, and sour beer) to ferment food waste, preventing it from rotting and making it easy for soil organisms to break down. While the precise origins of the term are not clear, the fermentation of organic matter to use as a soil amendment goes back centuries in Korea and likely has its roots in Korean Natural Farming practices gaining popularity around the world.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

This \u201cLacto<\/em>-fermentation\u201d process that occurs when making bokashi prevents decay by pickling food waste in an acidic, anaerobic environment. The Lactobacillus <\/em>bacteria break down carbohydrates in the food waste and produce lactic acid, which staves off the \u201cbad\u201d bacteria and moulds while retaining the nutrients of the fermented materials. Bokashi is quickly broken down by the organisms in soil and provides a readily available source of nutrients for the plants, fungi, and other biota living there.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

We began bokashi fermentation at our homes this past winter after listening to the October 31, 2020, episode of The Permaculture Podcast with Scott Mann<\/a>. Bokashi has three main benefits over composting when it comes to food-waste management:<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

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  1. Bokashi does not produce heat, CO2<\/sub>, or methane gas, all of which are or can be by-products of conventional composting. This means that bokashi provides more carbon to the soil ecosystem where it can be used by plants, rather than be emitted as a greenhouse gas.<\/li>\r\n
  2. Bokashi fermentation can occur in a small space (e.g., a 20-litre pail) and is a process that occurs quickly at room temperature\u2014as such, it can be done indoors during the winter months, unlike composting.<\/li>\r\n
  3. Bokashi fermentation works on all<\/em> food waste, including meat, bones, and dairy. It also works well on paper napkins, popsicle sticks, coffee filters and the like, cutting waste to zero!<\/li>\r\n<\/ol>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

    Bokashi fermentation is also a low-odour process, especially during fermentation when the lid is on the bucket. The fermented bokashi and liquid do have a sour smell to them; however, this smell disappears quickly when the bokashi is buried in soil.\u00a0 The low-odour nature of bokashi fermentation is a major benefit that makes bokashi ideal for use at the IISD ELA field station: past attempts at food waste management through composting quickly caught the attention of the local black bear population, and no one wants to have to sprint from building to building to avoid encountering a hungry and curious bear (especially at night!).\u00a0<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

    How We Make the Magic Happen<\/strong><\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

    Making bokashi is pretty straightforward and can be done by anyone for managing their food waste at home\u2014we\u2019ve included steps at the end for reference.\u00a0 The key to bokashi lies in the Lactobacillus<\/em> culture that is used to ferment the food waste. You can make this yourself (see steps at end) or purchase premade Lactobacillus<\/em> inoculated bran that is sprinkled on food waste rather than sprayed. I found that keeping the bokashi spray in a bottle in the fridge was the simplest and most effective means of handling the quantity of food waste generated by 30 plus people in camp, as a little goes a long way.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

    At IISD-ELA, the bokashi process is simple enough for everyone to get the hang of quickly. Here\u2019s a snapshot of what we are doing from plate to garden:<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

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