Anaerobic digestion of food wastes for biogas production

Five types of food wastes were investigated as feedstock for a potential centralized anaerobic digester system in the area of Sacramento,California to produce biogas energy.The wastes were from a soup processing plant,a cafeteria,a commercial kitchen,a fish farm,and grease trap collection service.Digestibilities of the food wastes,individually and in mixtures,were conducted at mesophilic(35℃)and thermophilic(50℃)temperatures and at two food to microorganism ratios(F/M)of 0.5 and 1.0,for 28 days.A continuously fed mesophilic single-stage anaerobic digester was evaluated using a mixture of the five food wastes at organic loading rates of 0.5 to 1.0 g VS/L/d.In the batch digestion tests,fish and grease trap wastes required longer time to complete the digestion and had higher biogas yields than the other wastes.The continuously-fed digester required the addition of sodium hydroxide to maintain pH at proper levels in the digester.Alkalinity of about 2,500 mg CaCO3/L and pH above 7 was maintained by adding 0.2 g NaOH/g VS.The results of this study indicated that it was necessary to use the chemicals,such as NaOH,to control the pH of the single-stage anaerobic digester treating the food waste.For commercial applications,the cost of chemicals and proper management of additional salts in the digester effluent need to be carefully considered.

Inoculation of Chlorella and Food Waste Improves the Physio-Morphological Features of Red Pepper by Regulating Activating Antioxidant Defense System

Food waste is recognized as a valuable source for potential agricultural applications to supply organic matter and nutrients to arable soil.However,the information on the combined application of food waste and the plant growth-promoting bacterial strain,Chlorella,related to plant metabolic features and sodium chloride content in arable soil is limited.The present study was conducted to investigate the exogenous application of food waste along with Chlorella,which improved the physio-morphological features of red pepper.Our results revealed that this combination enhanced the organic matter in the soil,ultimately improving the fertility rate of the soil,and the physio-morphological features,such as chlorophyll a content(24.5±0.7),root(7.8±0.7)cm and shoot length(12.1±0.7)cm,fresh weight(2.1±0.05)g,dry weight(0.19±0.05)g,mineral contents,and hormonal concentration(ABA by up to 2 folds).The combined treatment also minimized free radicals via the activation of the intrinsic antioxidant series cascade and electrolyte leakage.Our findings showed that adding Chlorella and food wastes improved growth characteristics and can be used as a green bio-fertilizer for sustainable agriculture.

Nutrient Evaluation of Dining Center Food Waste and Comparison to Monogastric and Ruminant Feedstuffs

The objective of this study was to analyze the nutrient composition and variability of university dining hall food waste and compare it with common feedstuffs used in ruminant and monogastric diets. Food waste was categorized into two initial streams: mainstream (MS) from the serving line and vegetable preparation (VP) from the kitchen. Waste was collected from the Kramer Dining Center, Kansas State University, resulting in 30 daily samples. Waste was weighed and ground to homogenous particle size. Daily samples of MS and VP were analyzed for nutrient composition, where results were combined to calculate the nutrient profile of a hypothetical mixed food waste stream (MX) composited by total weight. Data were analyzed using R statistical software (v 4.2.2). Moisture and neutral detergent fiber (NDF) were greater in VP (P , while ether extract (EE) was less compared to MS and MX. Crude protein (CP) was greater (P < 0.05) in MS and MX streams compared to VP. The total digestible nutrients (TDN) and energy were greater in MS food waste than in MX, which was also greater than VP (P content, measured by standard deviation, was similar (P > 0.05) among streams for NDF, nitrogen-corrected neutral detergent fiber, acid detergent insoluble crude protein, CP, ash, lignin, and digestible and metabolizable energy. Dry matter and EE variation were greater (P < 0.05) in MS, whereas VP was less (P < 0.05) compared to MX. Standard deviation increased (P < 0.05) in MS and MX for neutral detergent insoluble crude protein, TDN, and gross energy when compared to VP. Despite having 70% - 80% moisture, dining hall food waste does have nutritive value and the potential to be included in ruminant and monogastric diets. Further research needs to be done to understand the value of including it in animal diets.

Effect of Food Waste Compost (FWC) and its Non-Aerated Fermented Extract (NFCE) on Seeds Germination and Plant Growth

The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of the food wastes compost (FWC) and its non-aerated fermented extract (NFCE) on seed germination and growth of tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.), watercress (Nasturtium officinale), chili pepper (Capsicum annuum), peas (Pisum sativum L.), chickpea (Cicer arietinum) and beans (Vicia faba) under greenhouse conditions. The FWC and NFCE were physico-chemically and microbiologically characterized. The NFCE effect was evaluated on tomato, watercress, and chili pepper seeds germination and seedling growth. However, for leguminous, pea, chickpea and bean seedlings, the FWC amended soils and irrigated with NFCE were tested for plants growth. The results of FWC analyses revealed that FWC has neutral pH, low EC and C/N ratio, with fertilizing elements (N, P, K and Mg) and lack of phytotoxic effect. The NFCE was characterized by low EC and relatively high carbon content (COD = 9700 mg/l), and intense microbial activity, notably mesophilic bacteria. Therefore, in fermented compost extract, mesophilic bacteria were increased by 225, yeasts by 25 and molds by 10 times compared to those of the investigated compost. In greenhouse, the diluted NFCE increased significantly (p< 0.05) germination and growth of the tested seedlings. Used alone, the FWC amended soil or the NFCE irrigated soil, improved the growth of tested seedlings. The use of soil amended with compost and irrigated by fermented compost extract decreased significantly the growth of the same experimented seedlings. Therefore, the FWC and its fermented extract were a suitable substrate for germination and growth of the studied seeds.

Extraction, Production and Quality Evaluation of Margarine from Oil Extracted from Waste Biomass Peels of Avocado and Virgin Coconut Oil, Using Chitosan from Reared Shells as Preservative

The production and consumption of avocado pears generates tons of wastes, mainly the pear peels which are usually discarded, although they have been reported to contain important phyto-chemicals with biological activities. The adverse health effect associated with the consumption of saturated lipid based foods has ignited research on reformulation of lipid based foods to eliminate Trans Fatty Acids (TFAs). This study was thus aimed at the extraction and characterization of oil from Avocado Peels (APO) and evaluation of the quality of margarine produced from it. Five verities of pear were used for oil extraction by soxhlet method and physiochemical, oxidative, functional and antioxidant characterization was done. Margarines were formulated using a central composite design using oil blends of APO and Virgin Coconut Oil (VCO) with an oil ratio of 10:90, 40:60, 70:30 respectively, varied blending speed, blending time, and chitosan concentration. Samples were characterized and the effect of process parameters on the physiochemical and functional properties of the margarine studied. Optimized conditions were used to produce samples for sensory evaluation. Color, spreadability, aroma, taste and general acceptability was evaluated using ranking difference test. The results showed that the yield, density, and iodine values of APOs oils ranged from 14.91 ± 0.18 to 11.76 ± 0.46;0.93 ± 0.001 to 0.99 ± 0.1;46.63 ± 1.70 to 52.4 ± 0.63, their acid values, TBA and PV values ranged from 1.42 ± 0.39 to 1.97 ± 0.5;0.11 ± 0.002 to 0.18 ± 0.04;and 2.72 ± 0.14 to 4.43 ± 0.36 respectively, with Brogdon avocado peel variety having the overall best properties prepared blends of trans-free APO margarines showed that increase in APO ratio decreased melting point, increased oxidative stability and reduced moisture content of margarine samples. Chitosan addition leads to decrease moisture content and increase functional properties. VCO lead to increase in phenolic and flavonoid content of the margarines. Samples were spreadable and palatable with R20 being most palatable and the most accepted being R26 with a mean score of 7.07 ± 0.70. Decrease in color intensity increased acceptability. This study therefore demonstrated that avocado peel waste biomass can be valorized by using it as raw material for oil extraction, which can serve as good material for the production of trans-free margarines with good oxidative stability, functional and antioxidant properties.

High-solid Anaerobic Co-digestion of Food Waste and Rice Straw for Biogas Production

Anaerobic co-digestion of food waste（FW） and rice straw（RS） in continuously stirred tank reactor（CSTR） at high organic loading rate（OLR） was investigated. Co-digestion studies of FW and RS with six different mixing ratios were conducted at an initial volatile solid（VS） concentration of more than 3 g VS · L-1. The biogas production, methane contents, degradation efficiency of VS, chemical oxygen demand（COD） and volatile fatty acids（VFAs） were determined to evaluate the stability and performance of the system. The results showed that the co-digestion process had higher system stability and higher volumetric biogas production than mono-digestions. Increase in FW content in the feedstock could increase the methane yield and shorten retention time. The efficiency of co-digestion systems mainly relied on the mixing ratios of FW and RS to some extent. The highest methane yield was 60.55 m L· g V· S-1 · d-1 at a mass ratio（FW/RS） of 3 ： 1, which was 178% and 70% higher than that of mono-digestions of FW and RS, respectively. Consequently, the anaerobic co-digestion of FW and RS could have superior stability and better performance than monodigestions in higher organic loading system.

Formation of Struvite Crystals in a Simulated Food Waste Aerobic Composting Process

Bench-scale treatments with three mixtures of Mg and P salts, including K3PO4＋MgSO4, K2HPO4＋MgSO4, and KH2PO4＋MgSO4 as additives in a simulated food waste aerobic composting process, were conducted to test the magnesium ammonium phosphate（MAP） formation, and the compost products were analyzed by X-ray diffraction（XRD）, Scanning electron microscopy（SEM）, and Energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy（EDS） analyses. The comparison results between XRD, SEM, and EDS analyses of MAPs in the dried compost and synthesized MAPs confirm the formation of MAP crystals in the simulated food waste aerobic composting process. The analysis of the compost also indicates that the addition of all the three mixtures of Mg and P salts in the aerobic composting process can increase nitrogen conservation and decrease nitrogen loss because of the formation of MAPs. The mechanism of MAP formation was verified as the reaction of ammonium（NH4＋） with magnesium（Mg^2＋） and phosphate[HnPO4^（3-n） , n=0, 1, and 2）.

Food packing: A case study of dining out in Beijing

the financial project supported by the State Key Program of the National Natural Science Foundation of China （71233007）

An Integrated Framework for Regional Assessment of Water, Energy, and Nutrients from Food Loss of Selected Crops in the Lower Fraser Valley, Canada

Although there is no global shortage of food or water, food security has not been achieved, as human activity has turned these vital resources into “waste”. Wasted food not only loses valuable water resources but embedded calories of human energy and nutrients for healthy human populations. The Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations, in addressing these concerns, focuses on a global scale largely on an economic estimate of individual components of energy or water or nutrient loss. It is suggested that more information is required through local or regional assessments to provide better estimates, incorporating regional factors of the losses along the food supply chain. To address this suggestion, this study focused on an intensive agricultural and rapidly urbanizing region of Canada, the Lower Fraser Valley of British Columbia. Seven selected crops, including annual crops such as green peas, sweet corn and potato, and perennial crops that included three berry crops were assessed for their water, both constituent and virtual, as well as embedded energy, protein, and Vitamin C. Annual virtual water losses were higher for sprinkler than drip irrigation, ranging from 82 × 106 kg of water for strawberry to 7570 × 106 kg for blueberry. These high virtual water losses estimated along the food chain confirm the significance of food loss impacts on local water resources. Estimates of losses of food in kg were highest at the consumer level along the food chain and it was estimated that wasted food from the seven crops selected would have supplied the protein and caloric energy of over 33,000 men per year and Vitamin C of about 240,000 men per year. This assessment increases the awareness of food loss impacts from a regional perspective and provides a framework for future research on both environmental and nutritional implications of wasted food.

Effects of Ultrasonic and Acid Pretreatment on Food Waste Disintegration and Volatile Fatty Acid Production

This study aims at investigating the effects of ultrasonic and acid pretreatment on food waste( FW)disintegration and volatile fatty acid( VFA) production. Single-factor experiments are carried out to obtain optimal conditions of individual ultrasonic and acid pretreatment,and response surface method( RSM) is applied to optimize the conditions of the combination of ultrasonic and acid( UA) pretreatment. Results show that the optimal acid,ultrasonic and UA pretreatments conditions are individual pH 2,individual ultrasonic energy density of 1. 0 W / mL and the combination of ultrasonic energy density1. 11 W / mL and pH 1. 43,respectively. Correspondingly,the maximum disintegration degrees( DD) of 46. 90%,57. 38% and68. 83%are obtained by acid,ultrasonic and UA pretreatments,respectively. After optimizing pretreatment conditions,batch experiments are operated to produce VFA from raw and pretreated FW under anaerobic fermentation process. Both the maximum VFA production( 976. 17 mg COD / gV S) and VFA / SCOD( 72. 89%) are obtained with ultrasonic pretreatment, followed by UA pretreatment, non-pretreatment and acid pretreatment,respectively. This observation demonstrates that a higher acidity on acid and UA pretreatments inhibits the generation of VFA. Results suggest that ultrasonic pretreatment is preferable to promote the disintegration degree of FW and VFA production.

Food Waste Management in Luxury Hotels-Best Practices and Limitations

Hospitality industry and hotels are considered to waste a lot of food.This research aims to focus on food waste management in luxury hotels by investigating three luxury hotels in Budapest(Hungary).The investigation focuses on qualitative methods,eleven interviews and observations were made from September to December 2018.Results show that in luxury hotels the main challenge is to ensure the correct balance between 5*experience and minimizing food waste.It was found that kitchen,breakfast open-buffet and staff canteen are among the leading causes of food waste,generating even higher food waste compared to conferences,banquets,orála carte options.While a broad range of practices exist that are believed to minimize the food waste of buffets,most of the luxury hotels are only implementing a small ratio of such practices and are only in the beginning of the planning phase to expand their practices in this regard.

Water, Energy and Nutrient Losses from Food Wastage of Selected Crops in Three Agro-Climatic Zones in British Columbia, Canada

Food waste is a growing global concern. Data on the factors and magnitude are largely global estimates, thus local studies aid in providing information on the impacts of food waste. Three important agro-climatic zones in British Columbia and nine common crops, both annual and perennial, were selected to evaluate the environmental and nutritional implications of local food waste. Using Canadian estimates of total food waste, the constituent water, caloric content, protein, vitamin C, phosphorus and potassium wasted by each crop were estimated. Regionally, the total production and losses were the highest in the Lower Fraser Valley which had high production of potatoes and blueberries, followed by the Okanagan, with grapes and apples, and Vancouver Island, with potatoes. Virtual water was estimated by the BC Agriculture Water Calculator and used to assess the soil and climatic factors impacting the local water demand. Although soil texture seemed to influence water demand, the agro-climatic zone was the main factor controlling the water demand and the corresponding amount of water wasted. Dry agro-climatic zones had annual virtual water up to two times higher for the same crop and soil texture. Lower water demand crops, finer soils and more efficient irrigation systems were more congruent with water stress scenarios. Total losses for each region were based on conservative estimates and would have supplied the caloric energy and protein for over 40,000 adults, and vitamin C for over 300,000 adults for one year. Additionally, the total N, P and K wasted accounted for up to 32, 2 and 13 kg/ha respectively for common fertilizers used in British Columbia. This study confirmed the significance of food waste impacts on local water demand, human nutrition and soil management based on regional data for representative crops.

Biohythane production from two-stage anaerobic digestion of food waste:A review

The biotransformation of food waste(FW)to bioenergy has attracted considerable research attention as a means to address the energy crisis and waste disposal problems.To this end,a promising technique is two-stage anaerobic digestion(TSAD),in which the FW is transformed to biohythane,a gaseous mixture of biomethane and biohydrogen.This review summarises the main characteristics of FW and describes the basic principle of TSAD.Moreover,the factors influencing the TSAD performance are identified,and an overview of the research status;economic aspects;and strategies such as pre-treatment,co-digestion,and regulation of microbial consortia to increase the biohythane yield from TSAD is provided.Additionally,the challenges and future considerations associated with the treatment of FW by TSAD are highlighted.This paper can provide valuable reference for the improvement and widespread implementation of TSAD-based FW treatment.

Processes for the valorization of food and agricultural wastes to value‑added products:recent practices and perspectives

Biorefneries contribute to a circular bioeconomy using renewable feedstock to produce commodity and specialty chemicals as an alternative to petroleum chemicals.Using waste streams such as food waste and agricultural waste as a feedstock for biorefneries is a promising approach for obtaining value-added products in an economically feasible and sustainable way.The conversion of biomass to chemicals ofers diverse opportunities but poses new technological challenges.This paper aims to review the current state of food and agricultural waste valorisation by giving a brief technical overview,summarizing the current state of the bio-based market,and identifying the current barriers to scaling-up biorefneries.Utilizing lignocellulosic biomass in biorefneries calls for pre-treatment due to its complex structure,in which biomass is broken into monosaccharides,building blocks of value-added products.Diferent state of the art technologies for lignocellulose pre-treatment is introduced in the review followed by a brief explanation of the role of the hydrolysis and fermentation.The economic aspect of chemical production from biomass waste at an industrial scale is also introduced by giving an overview of some recent techno-economic studies.

Feasibility of housefly larvae-mediated vermicomposting for recycling food waste added digestate as additive

The development of methods for the efficient treatment and application of food waste digestate is an important research goal.Vermicomposting via housefly larvae is an efficient way to reduce food waste and achieve its valorization,however,studies on the application and performance of digestate in vermicomposting are rarely.The present study aimed to investigate the feasibility of the co-treatment of food waste and digestate as an additive via larvae.Restaurant food waste(RFW)and household food waste(HFW)were selected to assess the effects of waste type on vermicomposting performance and larval quality.Waste reduction rates of 50.9%–57.8%were observed in the vermicomposting of food waste mixed with digestate at a ratio of 25%,which were slightly lower than those for treatments without the addition of digestate(62.8%–65.9%).The addition of digestate increased the germination index,with a maximum value of 82%in the RFW treatments with 25%digestate,and decreased the respiration activity,with a minimum value of 30 mg-O_(2)/g-TS.The larval productivity of 13.9%in the RFW treatment system with a digestate rate of 25%was lower that without digestate(19.5%).Materials balance shows that larval biomass and metabolic equivalent had decreasing trends as the amount of digestate increased and HFW vermicomposting exhibited lower bioconversion efficiency than that of RFW treatment system regardless of the addition of digestate.These results suggest that mixing digestate at a low ratio(25%)during vermicomposting of foodwaste especially RFW could lead to considerable larval biomass and generate relatively stable residues.

Bio-Compost as a Soil Supplement to Improve Growth and Yield of Tomato (Lycopersicum esculentum)

Tomato is one of the most important fruit crops in the world which is consumed in a variety of ways. The high cost of chemical fertilizers has led to some farmers turning to alternative methods of production, such as the use of bio-fertilizers. Most organic waste may be changed into fertilizer at a low cost of production. The objectives of this study were to determine: 1) the effect of the application of bio-compost on growth, yield, and quality of tomato;2) to determine the effects of different bio-compost applications on growth, yield and quality of tomato. The field was marked out into eight blocks. It consisted of four treatments with two replications per treatment. The bio-fertilizer was applied to plots and incorporated into the soil. This study showed that the application of bio-fertilizers made from food waste only, cow dung only, and food waste and cow dung improved plant growth, number of leaves, plant height and fruit yield. However, the differences were not statistically significant except for the number of leaves. The study also revealed that the application of bio-fertilizer lowered the number of days to flowering, fruiting, and ripening by 50% as compared to the control group. Promoting the adoption and use of bio-compost made from different waste stream hold the promise to increase tomato production.

Insights into the changes of amino acids,microbial community,and enzymatic activities related with the nutrient quality of product during the composting of food waste

This study systematically investigated the changes of amino acids as the composting process of food waste proceeded.It is found that the addition of 0.3 g/g total solids of food waste achieved the highest seed germination index of the product(268%).The microbial community results indicated that the abundance of amino acid metabolism sequences remained at high levels during the whole composting process.Proline was identified as the key amino acid related with the nutrient quality of product during the composting of food waste.Further plant germination and hydroponic experiments found,that compared with those without the addition of proline,the addition of 50 mg/L proline increased seed germination rate by 20%,increased shoot length by 3%,increased root biomass of seedlings by 82%,and increased leaf biomass of seedlings by 76%,respectively.Firmicutes,γ-Pseudomonadota,Chloroflexi and Planctomycetes were the key identified bacteria related with the increase of proline during the composting of food waste.Meanwhile,the enzymatic tests of the activities of superoxide dismutase,peroxidase and malondialdehyde indicated that proline did not cause oxidative damage on the growth of plants.This study provided novel insights into the changes of amino acids,microbial community,and enzymatic activities related with the nutrient quality of product during the composting of food waste.

Inhibition mechanisms of ammonia and sulfate in high-solids anaerobic digesters for food waste treatment: Microbial community and element distributions responses

The horizontal flow anaerobic digester indicated that high ammonia (2923 mg/L) and SO42-(3653 mg/L)would influence the performance of methane production with food waste as substrates.Therefore,bottle anaerobic digestion reactors were carried out to investigate the effect of ammonia/sulfate concentrations on the methane production.Experimental results manifested that the anaerobic digesters with an ammonia concentration of 3500 mg/L or sulfate of 1600 mg/L showed the best performance of methane production,with an average methane yield of 0.32 and 0.33 L (g VS)^(-1)d^(-1),respectively.Specifically,a higher ammonia (6500 mg/L) or sulfate (1600-3500 mg/L) level hindered the bioconversion of C from liquid to gas phase (2.68%or 1.73%CH_(4)-Gas,respectively),while insignificantly for the hydrolyzation of C and N from solid to liquid phase.Similar to sulfate,high ammonia nitrogen seriously inhibited the methanation process,leading to a significant carbon accumulation in the anaerobic reactor,especially for propionic acid.The predominant archaea Methanosarcina at genus level indicated that aceticlastic methanogenesis was the major methanogenic pathway.Meanwhile,high ammonia level suppressed the activity of Methanosarcina,while modest sulfate improved H_(2)-consuming methanogens activity.A large fraction of unclassified bacteria within the Firmicutes (43.78%-63.17%) and Bacteroidetes (24.20%-33.30%) phylum played an important role in substrates hydrolysis.

Power-to-chemicals:sustainable liquefaction of food waste with plasma-electrolysis

The increasing amount of food waste from various industrial,agricultural,and household sources is an environmental burden if managed inappropriately.Numerous waste management approaches have been developed for the disposal of food waste,but still suffer from either high cost,production of toxic by-products,or secondary environmental pollutions.Herein,we report a new and sustainable plasma electrolysis biorefinery route for the rapid and efficient liquefaction of food waste.During the plasma electrolysis process,only the solvent is added to liquefy the waste,and anions in the waste can contribute to catalyzing the biowaste conversion.While liquefying the waste,the highly reactive species produced in the plasma electrolysis process can efficiently reduce the content of O,N,and Cl in the liquefied products and oxidize most of the metals into solid residues.Especially,the removal rate of Na and K elements was greater than 81%,which is significantly higher than using the traditional oil bath liquefaction,resulting in a relatively high-quality biocrude oil with a high heating value of 25.86 MJ·kg^(-1).Overall,this proposed strategy may provide a new sustainable and eco-friendly avenue for the power-to-chemicals valorization of food waste under benign conditions.

Enzymatic pretreatment mitigates the dissemination of antibiotic resistance genes via regulating microbial populations and gene expressions during food waste fermentation

Food waste(FW)has been recognized as essential reservoir for resource recovery via anaerobic fermentation,which could also bring the potential risk of antibiotic resistance genes(ARGs)dissemination.Although the structural deficiency of FW could be stimulated by enzymatic pretreatment to enhance fermentation efficiency,the influences of enzymatic pretreatment on ARGs fate and microbial metabolic pathways involved in ARGs dissemination have rarely been reported.This work proved that enzymatic pretreatment could effectively decrease the total abundance of ARGs(reduced by 13.8%-24.5%)during long-term FW fermentation.It was found that enzymatic pretreatment significantly reduced the ARGs belonging to the efflux pump,which might be ascribed to its ability to increase membrane permeability.Furthermore,enzymatic pretreatment was in favor of reducing microbial diversity and various potential ARGs host(e.g.,Methanosarcina,Clostridium,Prevotella,Parabacteroides).Also,this pretreatment remarkably up-regulated the genetic expressions involved in ABC transporter(e.g.,eryF and mntA)and down-regulated the genetic expressions that participated in DNA replication,two-component systems(e.g.,uphA and cckA),and quorum sensing(e.g.,rpfF and lsrG),thereby decreasing ARGs transmission.This study would expand the insight of the influences of pretreatment method on ARGs fate during FW fermentation,and offer practical guidance on the sustainable management of FW.