Fermentation

What is Fermentation, 
and why is it so much better than composting? 


Fermentation is a process of treating organic waste which uses anaerobic microbes, rather than aerobic microbes.  It is similar to the process of pickling - a pickled onion for example still looks like an onion, although inside it has changed completely.


The advantages of this process are many, including reduced greenhouse gas emission, a more nutritious end-product, and far easier management. 


A comparison of the two processes is as follows:

Composting	Fermenting
Can produce foul odours	Sweet-smelling, or odourless
Can attract rodents	No rodents
Can attract flies and other insects	Does not attract any insects, including flies
Produces heat	Produces no heat, all energy retained
Requires mechanical and labour input	Done in-vessel and requires no turning
Produces significant greenhouse gases	Produces minimal greenhouse gases
Takes up to 6 months to produce	Takes about 4 weeks to produce
Is unstable and reactive until complete	Is stable and storable immediately
Low nutrient value of end-product	High nutrient value of end-product
Produces leachate	No leachate, all nutrients retained
Only certain products can be composted	ANY organic material can be fermented