Composting in your kitchen

The benefits of composting, and easy indoor solutions

Have you jumped on the green train yet? No, we’re not talking about South Africa’s recent change of heart with regards to a certain plant, we’re talking about reducing our carbon footprint. From reusable coffee cups to saying no to plastic bags at the store, it seems like everyone is trying to do their part for the environment nowadays. It’s no wonder then that New Zealanders are spending more time tending to their fruit trees and veggie patches – growing your own produce is a great way to reduce your environmental impact. Even if you don’t have a large section, you can still benefit from creating your own fertiliser for your potted plants.

Why you should compost

Besides being a budget-friendly solution to keeping your soil rich in nutrients, composting is also a fantastic way to be environmentally friendly. According to ecoware.co.nz, around 122 500 tonnes of wasted food ends up in our landfills every year. That’s enough to fill 213 jumbo jets! Food that ends up in landfills produces methane and contributes to global warming. By composting your food scraps, you allow the food to decompose properly and create carbon dioxide, water, and of course, rich fertiliser!

What you can compost

• Plant material
  • This includes fruit and veggie scraps, peels, and plant clippings
• Paper
  • If it’s not plastic coated. Be sure to tear into small pieces.
• Hair
  • Yes, really! Put your own and your pets’ hair in the bin.
• Coffee grounds and tea bags
  • It is a good idea to let it dry out a bit first.
• Egg containers
  • This includes the cartons and the shells.

What you can’t compost

Unless you are using a Bokashi bucket, you there a quite a few things you can’t put into your compost bin:

• Plastic, glass, and metal.
• Meat and bones.
• Greasy or fatty foods.
• Dairy products.
• Poop.
  • Just don’t. Eew.

Kitchen-friendly solutions

Vermiculture

Vermiculture isn’t to everyone’s taste, as it involves keeping live worms in your house! If the thought of the creepy crawlies doesn’t put you off, getting a worm composter is a great solution for indoor composting. It doesn’t smell and is small enough to pop into a cupboard.

Bokashi

Bokashi composters make use of fermentation to break down material. Unlike the worm method, Bokashi systems can compost other materials such as meat and dairy. The downside is that these type of composters have a tendency to produce smells that might be off-putting to some.

Built-in composter

If you are busy building or refurbishing your kitchen, think about adding a built-in composting solution like this unit from our supplier, FIT, which will be available from October 2018. Having a built-in unit is an elegant way to make composting part of your everyday life. Get in touch with us, and we will gladly help you incorporate a composting solution that fits your needs and your space.