Some of the greatest challenges facing our communities today are growing healthy food sustainably and reducing our carbon footprint. Unsustainable growing techniques and poor disposal options for waste can be damaging to our environment.
The New Zealand Nature Farming Society, supported by Rodney District Council, is helping businesses in Rodney become more sustainable by promoting a composting system known as Bokashi. The technique involves recycling all crop and food waste back into the soil to provide valuable fertiliser with the help of a natural ‘effective micro-organisms’. This technique has been used for many years at the household level in New Zealand, and recently has been scaled up to handle commercial volumes of food waste.
Café, restaurant and vineyard owners are being invited to attend a seminar on Wednesday 18th March at Matakana Hall to find out how Bokashi could help their businesses become more sustainable. Glenda Andrew-Neal will be sharing her knowledge of how the composting technique has been successfully adopted on Waiheke Island by restaurants such as the Mud Brick Vineyard and Restaurant and international expert Dr Ravi Sangakkara will be showcasing successful systems from around the world.
Trish Allen from Rainbow Valley Farm who has helped to organise the seminar hopes that Rodney businesses and households will be keen to find out more.
“In tough economic times it’s even more important that we are able to put our waste to good use. What better way than to use our food waste to help grow more produce, save money on disposal and become more sustainable!”
The seminar will be split into two sessions. The afternoon session from 2 -4pm is aimed at cafe, restaurant and vineyards owners; the evening session from 7- 9pm describes how to use Bokashi at home and in the garden.
For more information and bookings please contact:
Sarah Stead
Environmental Education Coordinator
Rodney District Council
sarah.stead@rodney.govt.nz
Phone 0800 426 5169.