Food waste saved from the tip

HUNDREDS of tonnes of greenhouse gas-producing food waste could be saved from landfill each year thanks to an innovative new environmental system.

A three-month trial at Deakin University’s Waurn Ponds Estate corporate hospitality centre showed the system could reduce waste by about 12 tonnes a year.

Food waste is poured into a machine, in the new system, which uses controlled temperatures, agitation, airflow and organic starter material to decompose and pasteurise the food and organic waste into dry compost over 24 hours.

The Closed Loop CLO-30 system produces a nitrogen and phosphorous-rich soil conditioner or fertiliser.

Deakin organisational sustainability manager Emma Connan said the Close Loop CLO-30 produced fertiliser perfect for established plants in the garden.

Ms Connan said the estate previously generated more than 24 tonnes of total waste a year — or 460kg per week — but the Closed Loop CLO-30 system enabled diversion of more than 245kg of weekly waste away from landfill.

She said Deakin would now review whether the system could be implemented across the organisation’s four campuses and 19 food sites, possibly kicking off with a precinctscale trial at Deakin University’s Melbourne Bur- wood Campus. The move could potentially save hundreds of tonnes of food waste from ending up in landfill each year.

Ms Connan said Deakin was committed to being a leader in sustainability and environmental responsibility in the communities it serves.

“As Deakin University prepares and educates the next generation, we also have a responsibility to ensure that we’re doing everything we can to mitigate our impact on the environment for those future generations,” she said.

The trial program has led to Deakin University being short-listed as a finalist in the 2017 Green Gown Awards Australasia.