Why should you have a compost pot?

Why should you have a compost pot? What can go inside the pot? How do you keep away pests?

For many of us, we don’t actually know what happens to the food that gets wasted. Out of sight out of mind right? Well, that shouldn’t be the case. It is estimated that food wasted by the US and Europe could feed the entire world more than 3 times.

 In this blog we will be explaining what actually happens to the waste, why you should have a compost pot, what food is compostable and how to keep pests away.

What happens to our wasted food?

In the UK alone, 6.7 million tonnes of food is wasted every year, this totals a phenomenal £10.2 billion. 

Less than half is recycled into biogas and compost, or reused for animal feed within the EU. Around 40% is being sent to landfills which is a huge problem - this can cause us short and long term health effects. The food waste in landfills also decomposes and produces methane which is over 20 times the global warming capacity of carbon dioxide.

Why should I have a compost pot?

Compost is a decomposed, organic material often added to soil. It is great for helping your plants grow. In fact, to gardeners compost is considered “black gold”, due to its many benefits.

Using food waste for other alternatives such as compost, keeps the materials out of landfills in which they take up space and release methane, the potent greenhouse gas.

If you compost at home for one year only, you will be able to save global warming gases the equivalent of all of the CO2 your kettle produces a year or, your washing machine produces in three months. So, not only is it good for keeping your food out of landfills but it’s also great for your garden and beneficial to the environment in more ways than one.

What can go inside the pot?

Unfortunately, not every type of waste can go in the compost pot. Here is a list of the most common things you should add: fruits and vegetables, teabags, coffee grounds, crushed eggshells, grass cuttings, torn up cardboard egg boxes, fallen leaves, scrunched up paper and chipped wood.

All of these things will help to provide vital fibre and carbon, they will also allow important air pockets to form.

There are some vital materials you should not add; meat, fish, fats, grease, oils, diseased or insect-ridden plants and coal.

How do I keep away pests?

If you are adding the wrong items to your compost pot it will start to sweat which then leads to it smelling, this is what attracts the unwanted pests such as, raccoons, maggots and rodents. Ensure, you are adding the items we suggested with a right balance of green and brown items. The green items tend to be the food waste whilst the brown is the paper, wood chippings etc.

Placing the compost pot/bin in a well-drained area with minimal light is also suggested.

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