The Problem

Did you know that the average American generated 1,700lbs of waste per year and over 80% of all that waste goes to landfills and is not recycled.[1] In 2020, the EPA noted that landfills are one of the leading source of methane emissions accounting for nearly 15% of all methane emissions in the U.S. equating to 8% of total GHG emissions[2] (which is nearly the equivalent of all GHG emissions as growing food). In California, the problem is more severe with organic waste emitting 20% of the state’s methane emissions.[3]

Definition: Upcycle: to recycle (something) in such a way that the resulting product is of a higher value than the original item : to create an object of greater value from (a discarded object of lesser value)

The FAO reports that If food waste were a country, it would be third only to China and the United States in terms of greenhouse gas emissions.[4] That’s because up to 40 percent of food in the United States[5][6] and throughout the world is lost or wasted ending up in a landfill rotting away, generating methane and Green House Gasses (GHG). Decomposing food emits a large amount of greenhouse gases.

Interestingly, there is a solution. Food waste does not need to be wasted, it can be upcycled and used in other processes. Enter Cows.

Dairy cows are walking super converters and can digest foods that humans cannot due to their unique digestive system. Their 4-chamber stomach works like a bio-digester to breaking down fiber, cellulose, and lignin and converting food waste into high value, nutrient dense foods. Instead of rotting away in a landfill, cows can be the solution, recycling and converting food waste into something of great value- food.

The Solution: Upcycling CA Food Wastes

• Diverting food waste from landfill and Upcycling food waste to Dairy cows reduces emissions 49 times

• Even when compared to composting, using food waste for cows is nearly 5 times more impactful.

By converting food waste in this way, and diverting it from the landfill, cows can reduce GHG landfill emissions by 49 times.[7] Even when compared to composting, cows are 5 times more impactful at reducing GHG emissions. The highest and best use of food waste after it has been deemed unfit for humans is to pass it to cows so they can use it to produce food.

The EPA has developed the Food Recovery Hierarchy[8] that prioritizes actions organizations can take to prevent and divert wasted food. Each tier of the Food Recovery Hierarchy focuses on different management strategies for wasted food. The priority is to feed people but then the next best use of food is to feed animals like dairy cows. [9]

Interestingly, cows not only produce food, but they produce food of higher value. Cows need only .6kg of protein to produce 1kg of protein in milk.[10] Cows meet the very definition of upcycling- “recycling in a way that the results in a product is of a higher value than the original item.” And this is not accounting for the array of other bioactive nutrients that are present in milk that cannot be found in other foods.Feeding cows is a very beneficial use of food waste because the effects are multi-faceted and ripple throughout the supply chain.

In addition to reducing GHG emissions, feeding food waste to cows, results in the conservation of natural resources such as land, energy, fuel, and water. All of these resources are becoming more critical in today’s modern world. Using food waste as a source for feed for cattle can result in the subsequent savings of other resources.

Traditionally, dairy farmers in the United States will farm grasses and forages to feed to their dairy cows. The feed is blended with other ingredients by a bovine nutritionist to ensure the animals get the required nutrients from the diet.

The average lactating dairy cow needs to eat about 120 lbs of feed each day or about 55 lbs of dry matter per day. Cows have certain nutrient requirements, but their feed can be supplemented with a variety of by-products (such as food waste) that can be used to produce milk. This allows tremendous flexibility in the amount of food waste that can be fed to cows. Food waste is often full of key nutrients that cows need.

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[2] https://www.epa.gov/lmop/basic-information-about-landfill-gas#methane

[3] https://calrecycle.ca.gov/organics/slcp/

[4] https://www.fao.org/news/story/en/item/196402/icode/

[5] https://www.fao.org/3/bb144e/bb144e.pdf

[6] https://www.worldwildlife.org/initiatives/food-waste

[7] https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34557573/

[8] https://www.epa.gov/sustainable-management-food/food-recovery-hierarchy

[9] https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S095965262102343X

[10] https://www.bovinevetonline.com/news/industry/4-things-know-about-cattle-and-their-impact-sustainability