Food Waste is a Misplaced Resource: How Biochar is Leading the Resource Recovery Revolution for Urban Waste

Driving the circular economy is rooted in science! 🔬 A recent study published in Energies (Nash et al., 2025) provides compelling insights into the resource recovery of food waste. Key takeaways:

• Core Technology:
  The research utilized hydrothermal liquefaction, efficiently converting high-moisture food waste without pre-drying, directly producing biochar and bio-oil.
• Key Findings:

Coffee grounds performed best, yielding approximately 9.96% biochar and high-quality bio-oil.

Pear wine lees generated significant nutrient-rich wastewater, suitable for fertilizer or microalgae cultivation.

The resulting biochar has diverse applications, ranging from soil enhancement to heavy metal adsorption in water treatment.

•  Future Outlook:
  By optimizing processes for different waste streams, we can not only alleviate landfill pressure but also provide innovative circular solutions for agriculture, energy, and water treatment.

Explore the science powering a sustainable future!