How can we harness the power of organic waste to improve soil condition? According to the UN Environment Programme, some 60% of South Africa’s land has very low levels of organic matter, making it susceptible to degradation and low productivity. There is an urgent need to restore organic matter. At the same time, domestic organic waste that is capable of improving soil structure is simply being driven into landfill. Up to 40% of Johannesburg’s municipal solid waste is food waste. It decomposes into methane in anaerobic conditions, causing these sites to be the second highest producers of methane in the country.  

Vermicompost is compost made by earthworms. They eat organic waste and excrete rich compost which is especially good for organic farming. It is known as the best type of compost because it is so biologically rich and nutrient dense. The Compost Kitchen collects food waste from its subscriber households on a weekly basis. They then heat treat it and, with the help of earthworms, recycle the waste into vermicompost. They then give the vermicompost back to the customer for free in a craft paper bag, so they can use it in their vegetable garden to grow food again. His customers, who have no access to municipal recycling or composting services, pay 190 rand per month for this service. The business started at neighbourhood level, but Himkaar’s vision is to evolve the model using a circular economy approach which would valorise food waste and allow the company to go global. This would enable people to earn income from making vermicompost at home, which is expected to be a significant enough incentive to get people to compost their food waste.

This case study has been created as part of Footprints Africa's work to build the first ever comprehensive mapping of circular economy initiatives in Africa. This will lay the foundation open-source database that can inspire local initiatives, as well as inform the global dialogue, which is largely focused on the European and American contexts. We are doing this in collaboration with the African Circular Economy Network (ACEN). ACEN's vision is to build a restorative African economy that generates well-being and prosperity inclusive of all its people through new forms of economic production and consumption which maintain and regenerate its environmental resources.

The objective is to build an open-source database featuring 500 cases by the end of 2021, with strong regional representation. These will feature in the Knowledge Hub and are also being mapped by GRID-Arendal.