The north London boroughs of Barnet, Camden, Enfield, Hackney, Haringey, Islington and Waltham Forest collect food waste from residents and sometimes from businesses. It is then sent to an anaerobic digestion facility where it is used to create electricity and a liquid fertiliser.
What happens in an anaerobic digestion facility?
When food arrives at an anaerobic digestion facility, it is first separated from any non-biodegradable materials that might have found their way into it. It is then cut up into small pieces and pumped into big digestion tanks. The tanks get warmed up and, in a process that is very similar to a human stomach, the food waste breaks down and releases gas.
The 'biomethane gas' rises to the top of the digestion tanks and, after going through some filtering processes, it can be used to drive an engine and generate electricity. Biomethane is almost identical to the gas used in our homes.
The anaerobic digestion process also creates a liquid fertiliser called 'digestate'. This is full of natural nutrients, much better than artificial fertilisers which can be harmful to nature. The liquid is reduced down and used by farmers to grow new crops and food.
Learn more about what happens to north London's food waste in this video:
Find out where all of north London's recycled and waste materials go:
Where does the recycling and waste go?
Together We Recycle food waste
Food waste recycling is an important way to reduce our impact on the environment. In our 'Together We Recycle' campaign, we worked with north London food waste collection crews to show residents how easy it is to recycle food waste. Check our our videos below to learn more.