From food scraps to compost in a jiffy: We test the iCompost

If turning kitchen waste into compost could be done at the touch of a button, more people would take it up, and much less waste would end up in landfills. That’s what Himkaar Singh, the man behind the innovative iCompost, believes. Platteland was keen to put this innovative appliance to the test

- JOHAN VAN ZYL

At Platteland we are active proponents of composting, and over the years we have featured stories on everything from worm composting to bokashi. If you’re concerned about sustainability, making your own compost is the responsible thing to do. It doesn’t require magic or genius; you simply have to imitate the natural process by which Mother Nature turns decaying plant material and other organic waste into humus over time.

In our yard we have an ambitious number of “composting projects” on the go: a large, neglected compost pile with many thick branches in the olive grove; two composting bins by the vegetable beds; a plastic composting tower near the kitchen door; two worm farms in the garage; a bokashi bin in the pantry; and a stainless steel bucket in the kitchen into which peels, coffee grounds and teabags go (and which, despite our best efforts, always has a halo of midges).

For the vast majority of people who have a garden and/or potted plants, compost is something they buy at a nursery, a garden centre or a co-op. And the most common reasons they cite for not making their own compost is a lack of time, space, enthusiasm or muscle power required to build and manage a proper hot compost pile – not to mention having to wait for the compost to be ready.