The Growing Problem of Fresh Food Waste
in Bangkok
in Bangkok
Global Issue: Consumerism comes with a lot of garbage, and the amount of garbage goes higher in an urban area as population increases and the economy develops.
Fresh Food Waste in Bangkok: In Bangkok, there is 9,000 tons of garbage per day, an average one kilogram per person. Local government has to work in effort to manage the increasing amount of waste that produced from rapidly growth. Figure 1 shows the tendency of garbage amount in Bangkok.
Figure 1: The amount of garbage which Bangkok Metropolitan Administration has collected during 1992-2002 (SAPROF Team, Japan Bank for International Cooperation, 2000)
Food waste is the highest percentage component (44.3%) of garbage collected in Bangkok in 2005. There are 3 main ways to eliminate wastes in Bangkok which are burning in incinerator, hygienically burying underground, and burning outdoor.
Reducing and separating the waste consist of 4 main types of wastes
- fresh food waste : vegetable, fruits, meats
- recycle waste : bottles, plastic, magazines, boxes
- dangerous waste : batteries used, light bulbs, spray cans
- general waste : tissue papers, plastic bags
For general wastes, the government uses 2 ways to destroy them; one is hygienically burring wastes and composting wastes. For burring wastes, the wastes will be delivered to trash transporting station where the wastes will be compressed and wrapped with plastic bags. However, the eliminating waste methods still have strengths and weaknesses. For composting, this method can reduce wastes around 30 – 35% and the rest will be buried or burning. The advantages are creating fertilizer. The disadvantages are high cost and the wastes must be able to divide and are damp more than 50 – 70%. On the other hand, burring method can eliminate wastes 100% but it requires lots of space.
Why This is Important: Food waste is a growing problem. Normally food waste is wet, harbors pathogens, and decomposes, releasing a bad odor. This leads to unhygienic conditions and a rise in health problems. Lying around attracts flies, rats and other creatures that in turn spread diseases. Moreover, some materials such as plastic and paper cannot be recycled if it is stained with food waste.
Means of Communication: We will communicate to the public by online blog as our e-portfolio. The information of the food waste in Bangkok would be posted for the public to understand the nature of the problem as well as the data of food waste in the decades. We will also do further research on the recent activities that social groups in Bangkok have been done for the entrepreneurs to get thought started on what could be the possible challenges. We will advertise the blog in the forums relating to the environmental awareness to get the appropriate target audience. More information of the food waste and ideas will be continually posted throughout the challenge.
