- Food waste

Anaerobic Digestion (AD)

This is the Welsh Assembly Government’s preferred technology for treating food waste. AD is a source of 100 percent renewable energy. Even the power used to run the AD plant itself will come from its own internal energy generation process.

At its most basic level, this technology works just like us. It takes in food, digests it, and turns it into energy. Using natural bacteria the process breaks down food waste in the absence of oxygen.  This produces a biogas that can be used to create heat and electricity.  It also produces a digestate similar to compost.  This can be used as a soil conditioner to return vital nutrients back to the land.  This improves soil quality while reducing our reliance on artificial fertilisers. 



Listen to the BBC Radio 4 interview on how anaerobic digestion works - Sarah Mukherjee reports on government plans to invest in anaerobic digestion.

Watch John Craven's report on Food Waste & Anaerobic Digestion for the BBC's Countryfile

In Vessel Composting (IVC)

IVC is a process that treats food waste and garden waste at the same time.  It is based on the natural process of composting. The waste is shredded and watered to create a moist material.   The composting process is then intensified by pumping air and water into the waste while the temperature is closely monitored to ensure the waste stays at a minimum of 60°C for 2 days.  The IVC process provides a simple way of turning our waste into compost.  When used in agriculture it reduces our reliance on artificial fertilisers which require huge amounts of energy to make. 

By doing so it helps to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.