GITAM’s Homegrown Compost Pelletization Technique Empowers 250+ Andhra Farmers
Hyderabad, 22 April 2023: Food insecurity is a global crisis today. Besides the threat to farmers’ livelihood and agriculture, a bigger problem for India is loss and wastage, with India ranking 107 out of the 121 countries, in the 2022 Global Hunger Index. Working to address the crisis in farm livelihood and food wastage, GITAM (Deemed to be University) is empowering local farmer communities in Andhra Pradesh and helping them develop entrepreneurial skills, while upcycling the food waste via a unique compost pelletization project. Having received a grant of close to INR 40 lakhs from the Science for Equity Empowerment and Development (SEED) Division under the Department of Science and Technology (Government of India), the project tackles the dual issues of food waste and availability of quality agricultural compost for farming.
The project uses leftover food, highly nutrient-dense in proteins, lipids, carbs, and other macro and microelements, as a fertilizer. The food waste is sent to an organic digestion machine, which converts it into compost within 24 hours. Such a compost digester facility is available at the university’s Vizag campus, which also helps demonstrate the production process to potential beneficiaries.
The project is ongoing till August this year, but GITAM (Deemed to be University) plans to continue and expand the project to urban areas, where the demand for good quality manure is high, and urban gardening is catching up.
The project uses leftover food, highly nutrient-dense in proteins, lipids, carbs, and other macro and microelements, as a fertilizer. The food waste is sent to an organic digestion machine, which converts it into compost within 24 hours. Such a compost digester facility is available at the university’s Vizag campus, which also helps demonstrate the production process to potential beneficiaries.
The project is ongoing till August this year, but GITAM (Deemed to be University) plans to continue and expand the project to urban areas, where the demand for good quality manure is high, and urban gardening is catching up.