KELLOGG'S ENLISTS COMPOST CHEF

Manchester-based cereal giant begins work on meeting emissions pledge

Kellogg's boosting soil health on its farms with innovative techniques

Kellogg’s has enlisted a ‘compost chef’ as it begins working towards its landmark sustainability commitment to more than halve its greenhouse emissions.

Renowned soils expert Anna Becvar is working with Kellogg’s British farmers to ensure the health and sustainability of their crops.

Ms Becvar is advising farms in the Kellogg’s Origins Programme – the Manchester-based cereal giant’s attempt give the grains in its foods the best start – on harnessing organic materials to improve their soils.

Nicknamed the ‘compost chef’ at Kellogg’s for working magic on the soils, Ms Becvar is actually advising on two very different processes that recycle food and green waste by diverting it from landfill.

1 – Composting: Producing compost from green waste in open windrows, or from green and food waste within ‘in-vessels’ (such as containers or silos) through mixing, aeration and self-generated heating. The compost produced is a stable, sanitised soil improver.

2 – Anaerobic digestion: Taking food wastes and breaking them down in the absence of oxygen to produce biogas and digestate ‘Biofertiliser’. The Biofertiliser is rich in nitrogen and a range of plant nutrients, saves on the need for fertilisers derived from fossil fuels and can cut the amount of carbon dioxide entering the atmosphere.

Using waste that would have otherwise ended up in the landfill helps reduce methane gas emissions.*

The move is part of Kellogg’s promise to reduce its own greenhouse gas emissions by 65 per cent by 2050, and those of its suppliers by 50 per cent in the same timeframe.

Ann Noble, Kellogg’s sustainability manager, said: “Kellogg’s is always on the lookout for ways to be more sustainable. Why have food going to landfill, or use fossil fuel fertilisers, when you can use waste to create a rich soil that will help us grow future harvests?

“Working with our Compost Chef is one of the novel approaches we’re using to encourage more sustainable farming.”

Anna Becvar, director of Earthcare Technical, said: “I found Kellogg’s Origins growers to be really engaged on improving their soils. Effectively managed soils can not only generate more yield, but they can be less costly to work, reducing fuel use and potentially reducing impact on the wider environment. 

“We’ve been focusing on the potential of improving soils with organic manures, such as quality compost and Biofertiliser made from recycled green waste and food waste. In the short term both compost and Biofertiliser can provide nutrients and reduce reliance on fertilisers.  In the longer term we can build soil organic matter levels for better, more resilient soils and improved soil health.” 

ENDS

For more information, please contact the Kellogg’s press office on 0161 869 5500, or email pressoffice@kellogg.com. Interview opportunities with Ann Noble, Kellogg’s sustainability manager, are available on request.

*According to the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organisation: “A low percentage of all food wastage is composted: much of it ends up in landfills, and represents a large part of municipal solid waste. Methane emissions from landfills represents one of the largest sources of GHG emissions from the waste sector.”