PILOT Food waste collections at the Teviot Estate

We are about to install a community-scale anaerobic digester or 'biodigester' at R-Urban Poplar, over the road from the Teviot Estate in Poplar, Tower Hamlets. It means we can process more food waste alongside our Ridan composter. Altogether, we be able to manage around 900 kgs per week - about 25% of the food waste from the estate, which has 535 households. If successful, we hope to scale this up so that we can manage up to 100% of the estate's food waste.

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We're doing this because food waste often travels long distances for disposal, when it could benefit local people where they live by being turned into useful by-products  like compost and biofertiliser, supporting local food growing and replacing synthetic fertilisers, which have a high carbon footprint.

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We can also produce bioenergy, which will be used on-site for things like cooking, hot water and a community sauna. If we can show the benefits of doing things this way, the approach could spread to other neighbourhoods, creating community eco-hubs with green training, educational and employment opportunities.​​​

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If you'd like to know more or find out how this might work on your site, get in touch.