“Old” news, but still relevant.

Mon, May 07, 2007 – …searches on “compost” are up 160% over the last month.

We held our noses long enough to investigate the top compost searches worming their way through Buzz. Here’s how they stack up…

Crazy For Compost – Yahoo! Buzz Log

My focus on composting and sustainability has led me to some interesting places on the ‘net. Lately, I’ve been looking for extra compost bins on Vancouver Craigslist. While reading the posts, I find many people asking for worms aka wrigglers to start their own worm bins. This is great news. Even though I offer for sale a completely different [better] composting system, – no fruit flies, no odour – I am happy to see people take the steps to reduce their food waste.

I have replied by email a number of times to individuals with this information:

City Famer’s Worm Composting page

City Farmer’s Worm Supplier page includes suppliers in BC, Canada, The U.S.A and from around the world.

The City of Vancouver

has a limited number of Worm Composters available at the low price of $25. The units come complete with the bin, lid and tray, worms, bedding and instructions, and a mandatory one hour workshop at the Compost Demonstration Garden [aka City Farmer - Al]. To register for the workshops or to get more information, call the Compost Hotline at 604-736-2250.

The GVRD’s Composting and Yard Trimmings page has a A Guide to Composting with Worms [.pdf file]

Finally, if you live in Vancouver, I have thousands of worms in my compost bins if you want to come over and sort through the stuff. Call or email me. My contact information is on the Home page in the left column.

Cross-posted to changeeverything.ca
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Technorati Tags: craigslist, vancouver, craigslist+vancouver, gvrd, worms, worm+suppliers, cityfarmer.org, city+farmer, compost, composting, vermiculture, worm+bin, indoor+composting

From a bokashi user in England:

Bokashi Bucket….Update

We have had the Bokashi Bucket for two weeks so it is still early days yet but we are finding it extremely easy to use and are noticing how much less is going into the waste bin.
…
Just make sure that when you do replace the lid ensure that it is sealed correctly and air tight. The bucket is approximately 1/3 full after two weeks in a household of three people.

Includes photos of the custom designed bokashi bucket. Any bucket made out of existing materials can do the job at home or at work.

Read it all….

I share information about bokashi composting to remove the confusion and mystery about it. You have your own buckets to collect the compost? No problem. You can buy only the bokashi. If you want to be adventurous, you can make your own bokashi, but I’m just as happy selling it too.

Same thing with the buckets. There are commercial systems available but home made solutions ones work too.

Jay Summet shows how he made a bokashi bucket with

[a cat litter container], a $5 Coleman igloo spout, and some laser cut 1/8 inch acrylic left over from a picture frame.

Important note: Not all buckets come with “pre-existing plastic strengthening tabs in the bottom of the cat litter container” so you will need another method of raising the acrylic above the bottom of the bucket.

The other One solution is to have two nesting buckets, with holes drilled into the top [inside] bucket, so the liquid drains into the second, as mine do.
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Technorati Tags: bokashi, composting, compost, bucket, diy, fermentation, lactic acid cultures

Edited from an email sent to a customer:

There are a number of options available:

1) Mix the Biosa, molasses and water with bran using this recipe*. Let it ferment in a warm place for a few weeks then dry. 1L of Biosa, molasses and water will make 160Kg/350lb of bokashi. 1Kg of dried bokashi can last 8 – 16 weeks, so it encourages use for composting household waste indoors [even during the winter.:-)]. It can also be used in larger settings such as school/community center lunch rooms and as a kitty litter deodorizer.

2) Mix the Biosa with molasses and water. This creates an Activated Biosa that can be diluted as low as 2%. 1L of Biosa will make 34L Activated. At a 2% solution, this is enough to use with 1700L with water. There is a limited shelf life to this product, 2 – 4 weeks, but it would be the best solution for dealing with a lot of post-consumer waste. You don’t have to make it all at once. Smaller quantities – as little as 500ml – make it accessible for use in restaurants, cafeterias etc. It can also work as an odour control agent; if you know what the smell of a fat rendering collection truck is like during the summer, this would be a big help if they washed their trucks with it.

*includes link to a list of suppliers all over the world, including me.

On this site, you can order here.

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Technorati Tags: biosa, bokashi, activated, diy, recipe, EM, lactic+acid+cultures, fermentation, compost, composting, bakashi

Nice to see this progress…

Saving Food from the Dump – CKNWAM

Feb, 17 2007 – 3:50 AM

VANCOUVER/CKNW(AM980) – Recommendations have been made to Vancouver City Council on food composting and diverting food from the landfill, thanks to a new food policy report.

Susan Kurbis of the Food Policy Council says they looked at a small-scale community garden compost in the Strathcona district that led to some surprising results, “They were processing, actually, up to 4 to 6 tonnes a week of food that was destined normally for the landfill…out of 100 tonnes of food waste, we were able to secure 20 tonnes of finished compost.”

The report also studied ways in which edible foods, destined for the landfill, can be diverted as a resource for local charities.

Vancouver City Council Meeting 15Feb07

.pdf file Second Annual Food Policy Progress Report

Technorati Tags: vancouver, food policy council, compost, composting, waste, diversion, landfill, food bank, report

• Friendly bacteria to fight [traveller's] diarrhoea
  “Protection rate with probiotics against traveller’s diarrhea was 39 per cent and frequency of diarrhea was significantly reduced among the group supplemented with probiotics as compared to the group with no supplementation.”
  (tags: 1Maven lactobacillus probiotic health 07feb 2007)

• Inulin – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
  Inulins are a group of naturally occurring oligosaccharides (several simple sugars linked together) produced by many types of plants. They belong to a class of carbohydrates known as fructans.
  (tags: 1Maven prebiotic probiotic 07feb 2007)
• Inulin recommendations match efficacy, shows study
  The ability of the prebiotic fibre inulin to boost the population of ‘friendly’ bifidobacteria in the gut works at both low and high doses without side effects, says new research.
  (tags: 1Maven probiotic prebiotic biosa ingredients Bifidobacterium 07feb 2007)
• Global Warming: The Cold, Hard Facts?
  “….Tim Ball, a long-retired professor from the University of Winnipeg and a well-known climate-change denier who has not published a peer-reviewed scientific publication on climatology in more than a decade.” Read more: http://tinyurl.com/ynmdwd
  (tags: climatechange globalwarming media analysis canada 07feb 2007 oil company shill)
• Urban farming against hunger
  The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization has opened a new front in its battle against hunger and malnutrition – in the world’s cities where most of global population growth is set to take place over the next decades.
  (tags: 1Maven 100+mile+diet sustainability urban gardening agriculture 07feb 2007)
• 10 things you shouldn’t buy new – MSN Money
  MSN…hmmmm. A career ending move would be include the first release of any new software program – like Windows Vista or WordPress 2.1 [I use WP 2.0]
  (tags: advice funny reference 07feb 2007)

• Seed balls – Permaculture reflections
  “Seed balls are simply seeds mixed with equal proportions of dried compost and clay, formed into small balls, and dried for later sowing.” Includes instructions on how to make them.
  (tags: seedballs permaculture 07feb 2007)
• PPWP Seed Balls
  The Pajarito Plateau Watershed Partnership (PPWP) is a regionally-based group of citizens and professionals concerned with issues affecting watersheds on the eastern flank of the Jemez Mountains in northern New Mexico.
  (tags: seedballs reforestation seedballs.com 07feb 2007)
• Seed Ball NZ
  This link was found on www.seedballs.com, which is archived at the Internet Archive Wayback Machine on June 6, 2004 http://tinyurl.com/2rdco2
  (tags: seedballs seeballs.com new zealand 07feb 2007)
• Some Research & Applications Of Seed Balls And Related Subjects Around The World
  Archived at www.seedballs.com http://tinyurl.com/2rdco2
  (tags: seedballs seedballs.com 07jan 2007)
• The Seattle Times: Local News: Feeding “The Big Pig” and saving the planet
  She’s a lactose-intolerant vegetarian — and the kids at Covington’s Crestwood Elementary School know just how finicky she is.
  (tags: 1Maven indoor compost composting recycling environment 07feb 2007)
• Albany [OR] Democrat-Herald – Taking the stink out of composting
  (tags: 1Maven compost composting 07feb 2007)
• ‘Friendly’ germs, probiotics are all the rage among consumers
  “Consumers are starting to hear about probiotics and (that) somehow they’re good for you,” says David Schardt, senior nutritionist at the Center for Science in the Public Interest. “Food manufacturers are always looking for the latest thing to try to get
  (tags: 1Maven probiotic lactobacillus 07feb 2007)
• EarthquakesCanada main index – Western Canada
  04Feb07 – “While the probability of a major earthquake increases during the time of ETS events it still remains very low.”
  (tags: earthquake canada reference 07feb 2007)
• globeandmail.com: B.C. put on alert for huge quake [Link valid 7 days only]
  “Everyone drives their car every day, and the probability of getting in a car accident is small,” Dr. Rogers said. But during rush hour, the probability of getting into an accident is much higher.“Well, Vancouver Island is now driving in rush hour.”
  (tags: earthquake seismic vancouver 07feb 2007)

‘Friendly’ germs, probiotics are all the rage among consumers

Move over oat bran, Echinacea and green tea.

Get ready to make shelf space for probiotics, the latest natural product to grab the health-minded consumer’s attention and pocketbook.

Long popular in Europe and Japan, probiotics are friendly living microorganisms that promote the growth of the good bacteria in our gut, helping us digest and absorb food and nutrients, as well as keep things movin’ through.

According to the folks at Dannon, San Antonio is in need of some help in the digestive department: the Alamo City ranked sixth in its Activia Most Irregular Cities survey.

But are friendly bacteria the answer? And are they worth the extra price?

Judging by their growing acceptance and use in the United States, consumers certainly believe they are.

According to the Nutrition Business Journal, sales of supplements containing probiotics (which is how most probiotics are sold in this country) grew from $100 million in 1997 to $243 million in 2005 — a jump of 143 percent.

And, more foods enhanced with probiotics — from yogurt to breakfast cereal to granola bars — are entering the marketplace, often at a premium price. Yogurts fortified with probiotics, for example, can cost 20 percent to 25 percent more than regular yogurt.

Whether popped as a pill or spooned from a carton, these products are promoted with claims that range from the legitimate (treating diarrhea) to the outlandish (giving you a flat stomach).

“Consumers are starting to hear about probiotics and (that) somehow they’re good for you,” says David Schardt, senior nutritionist at the Center for Science in the Public Interest. “Food manufacturers are always looking for the latest thing to try to get people to buy their product.”

Read it all…
ooo

Technorati Tags: probiotic, lactobacillus