Organic materials represent a substantial portion of our household, industrial, and agricultural waste. However, when this organic material is effectively managed and repurposed, it can contribute to the health of the planet and promote the circular economy.
Industrial composting has become an important part of local and national sustainability policies. The more municipal solid waste that’s composted, the less ends up in landfill, which is a great result for the environment as well as for businesses that want to achieve zero waste and reduce their carbon footprint.
Landfill levies are also on the rise but more importantly, consumers increasingly choose products and services that are environmentally and socially responsible. It is this consumer preference that drives entire industries to change, and no market or sector is unaffected.
Surveys show that consumers value sustainable practices and brands that focus on reducing packaging waste, using recycled materials, energy-efficient manufacturing processes and sustainable waste management. No less than 87% of New Zealanders are concerned about sustainability, according to the Sustainable Business Council in their report In Good Company. Enough reason for industries to explore more sustainable waste management alternatives.
Success in partnerships
Since 2007, MyNoke has fostered a circular flow of nutrients within food production systems and reintroduced organic material back into the soil as vermicast. In working with local and regional councils, paper and pulp mills, food producers and food processing industries, MyNoke’s earthworms have upcycled more than 1.4 million tonnes of organic waste to date.
An increasing number of organisations that produce significant volumes of organic waste materials or by-products choose environmentally conscious waste disposal solutions. One of the success stories is Ingham's, New Zealand’s leading wholesale chicken supplier and poultry farm. A key point in their sustainability commitment and policy is to reduce the waste sent to landfill by 20% by 2030 (against the FY20 baseline). Within one year, thousands of tonnes of organic waste from Inghams’ production line has been upcycled at MyNoke’s vermicomposting sites.
In 2023, Silver Fern Farms also joined MyNoke in a partnership which involves processing hundreds of tonnes of rejected pelts after being graded at their tannery. They have an ambitious target of a 70% reduction in tonnes of organic waste to landfill (from the FY21 baseline) and their Sustainability Action Plan includes a circular future which entails reducing waste, creating value, and circular design thinking.
What's done with organic waste in NZ?
The impact of our waste on the climate is more important than most people realise. According to the Ministry for the Environment Manatū Mō Te Taiao, 9% of New Zealand's biogenic methane emissions and 4% of our total greenhouse gas emissions are caused by food and other organic waste alone.
Currently, New Zealand stands at a pivotal moment in its efforts to minimise and effectively handle organic waste. Studies have highlighted the substantial volume of organic waste destined for landfills, leading to detrimental outcomes like increased greenhouse gas emissions and the loss of valuable organic resources.
In terms of further statistics around organic waste for New Zealand, the Waste and Resource Recovery: Infrastructure and Services Stocktake report (published in 2023) provides an estimation of the organic material stream based on data collected during 2020 and 2021.
It estimates that approximately 4.05 million tonnes of organic material are generated annually across the country, with over half coming from the rural sector, a further quarter from the commercial sector (including sludges) and the remainder from households. Over half of the organic waste generated is recovered, around a quarter is estimated to go to rendering or other value-adding processes from abattoir operations. Nearly a third is estimated to be sent for composting or other biological treatment methods.
How vermicomposting compares
Organic materials management is a growth industry, taken on by a range of enterprises and practices that operate across different scales and sites. The most common methods for the processing of organic waste on an industrial scale are commercial (thermal) composting and anaerobic digestion, which is the conversion of organic material to biogas.
Even though organic waste is increasingly recognised as a valuable resource, as it contains valuable nutrients that can be used as natural fertiliser or as a basis for generating sustainable energy sources, processing this type of waste is not without its challenges.
Organic waste consists of a wide variety of materials, including food scraps, paper products, municipal biosolids and animal processing wastes. These diverse waste streams are not necessarily readily useable as resources. The process of vermicomposting carries out functions like pathogen reduction (sanitisation), odour control, pH neutralisation and volume reduction that enable us to utilise these resources. The humble earthworm processes this wide range of organic materials and in doing so, reduces the overall volume by 80%. The remaining 20% is excreted in the form of castings that are rich in nutrients, beneficial micro-organisms and in an available form for agriculture, horticulture, and other end uses.
Some other organic waste processing methods, such as thermal treatment or anaerobic digestion, require energy inputs for heating, mixing, and maintaining process conditions which means energy consumption can impact the overall environmental footprint and economic viability of these waste management systems. In the case of an anaerobic digester, the digestate left behind after the waste has been processed has to either be buried underground in a landfill or depending on its chemical composition, used as a fertiliser on agricultural land. However as the sludge may contain toxic industrial chemicals it is not spread on land where crops are grown for human consumption.
An important consideration for councils is to find a way to efficiently divert organic materials from landfills at the lowest possible cost. Consequently, councils often prioritise large, centralised facilities that are capable of processing significant volumes of organic waste. However, these facilities are often expensive to build and operate.
MyNoke’s infrastructure model has flexibility to adapt to larger volumes by securing additional farmland and inputs as required, which has significant benefits compared to other organic waste processing methods, including relatively low establishment and operating costs, and less energy input, with a highly valuable end-product as the result.
Choose sustainable organic waste management
Making vermicomposting the industrial composting method of choice is not only cost-effective, but it also creates a valuable soil conditioner that can be used to return organic matter to soils.
In line with MyNoke’s circular economy approach, an all-natural and environmentally sensitive disposal arrangement is offered to councils and manufacturers as an alternative to landfill.
Contact the team on info@mynoke.co.nz or call 0800 MYNOKE to find out more about how you can utilise vermicomposting technology as your chosen sustainable method of organic waste disposal and a way of converting waste to resources to benefit New Zealand soils.
The organic waste material MyNoke accepts includes:
- Food scraps and food waste
- Cardboard and paper products
- Fibrous waste from pulp mills along with ash
- Sludge from dairy and cheese plants
- Organic waste from food processing industries and packhouses
- Digestate from anaerobic digesters
- Municipal biosolids/sewage sludge
- Farm manure and dairy farm effluent
- Bulk green wastes including lake weed
Contact MyNoke for more information.
For further reading about organic waste management, view or download the report Scaling-up, scaling-out & branching-out: Understanding & procuring diverse organic materials management models in Aotearoa New Zealand, published by Manaaki Whenua Landcare Research and Zero Waste Network New Zealand here.