Food Wastage Processing And Minimization

1. Food Wastage Processing And Minimization The real way of life is living in sync with the nature, leaving the least carbon footprint and reducing the waste for a cleaner greener environment. Many individuals and organizations have taken a step forward in cleansing the mess and in collecting the recyclables such as plastic bottles, empty cans, empty packets of eatables, polythenes, paper plates and other bits of trash that are often sighted on corners of the streets and in abandoned areas. Apart from non organic and plastic waste every year considerable amount of food material is discarded or uneaten yielding to food waste. The causes of food wastage or loss are numerous, and it occur at the several stages of food supply chain, including food production, processing, retailing and during consumption. While planting crops can be subjected to pest infestations and severe weather, that cause losses before the harvest. Also the usage of machinery in harvesting can cause waste, as harvesters may be unable to discern between ripe and immature crops, or collect only part of a crop. Due to governmental regulations and many other economic factors, such as regulations and standards for quality and appearance, also cause Food Waste. In storage, considerable quantitative food is lost due to pest and microorganisms attacks. Climatic factors such as weather condition, humidity or action of microorganisms also attribute for food waste. Many retail stores throw away large quantities of food that have reached its expiry. Many retailers also have to follow strict cosmetic standards, if fruits or vegetables are unfit or superficially bruised, they are discarded and often not put on the shelf for quality issues. Food wastage is also attributed to excessive purchasing, over-preparation for consumption and unwillingness to consume leftovers, food decay due to long or inappropriate storage. As alternatives to landfilling, food waste could be composted to produce soil and fertilizer, could be used to fed animals, or used to produce energy or fuel. Food waste can be biodegraded by composting, and reused to fertilize soil. By redistributing nutrients and high microbial populations, compost retains water for longer period and minimizes soil erosion by enhancing rainfall penetration. Vermicomposting is the practise of feeding scraps to worms that produces fertilized soil as a byproduct. Commercially, food waste in the form of wastewater coming from commercial kitchens’ sinks, dishwashers and floor drains is collected in holding tanks called grease interceptors to minimize flow to the sewage system. It contains both organic and inorganic waste that is often referred to as fats, oils, and grease (FOG) waste or more commonly "brown grease". These brown grease is taken by pumpers or grease-hauling trucks to wastewater treatment plants, where they are charged to dump it. Sometimes these brown grease also recycled to produce diesel and other fuels. The purpose of waste Interceptor is to separate water from oil, silt, dirt and any contaminants picked up within the drainage system. The separated waste is retained in a separate chamber in the interceptor for collection. Interceptors are designed to allow only water to drain from the outlet. This enables pollutants, such as fuel oil, solids and other miscellaneous contaminants, to be captured within the confines of the interceptor itself. An Interceptor requires regular cleaning to remove this waste. Failure to have scheduled cleaning raises the risk of flooding and sending contaminated pollutants into the sewage or watercourse. Food wastes are undesirable for the food industry in terms of sustainability and environmental impact, but perhaps more important in view of high disposal costs. One best way of dealing with food waste is to reduce its creation. Consumers can reduce spoilage by planning their food shopping, avoiding potentially wasteful spontaneous purchases, and storing foods properly.