Efficient Method to Reduce Weight and Volume of Food Waste at Home by Creating a Powered Dry-Grinding System

Almost 330 million pounds of food are wasted in the United States every day. This waste ends up in landfills and emits a harmful chemical called methane. According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), food waste is directly responsible for two percent of carbon emissions [1]. Throwing away food waste into green trash bins at high temperatures can bring about fetid rotting. Our project goal is to reduce the amount of food waste and demonstrate an eco-friendly and efficient disposal method by optimizing the blade for a dry-grinding system. We developed a dry-grinding system with the inside temperature of the container maintained at 80°C ± 3°C for dehydration for 3.5 hours. To reduce moisture, we installed a fan in the system and activated it for 5 hours. We designed 4 different types of blades, tested them in the same condition, and selected the best blade type to reduce food waste. We quantified the food waste reduction with 7 different foods and dairy food waste. Our method demonstrated an average food waste reduction of 76% weight and 67% volume. Ultimately, processed food waste is a natural and sustainable alternative as it enriches soil with essential nutrients that can be used as compost.