TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The 78-year-old founder of Tetanti AgriBiotech, Yang Chiu-chung (楊秋忠), was born into a farming family in Nantou County and got a first-hand look at how chemical fertilizer increased crop yields over the short term but also caused soil degradation, water pollution, and a decline in food quality.
As a result, he has dedicated much of his life to the study of soil microbiology and the benefits of organic fertilizer as a sustainable alternative. He said his research at National Chung Hsing University revealed how enzymes can speed up the transformation of organic waste into organic fertilizer, restoring soil fertility and soil structure, in an interview published on Tuesday by CNA.
According to Yang, his process of using enzymes is far better than alternatives such as landfill or incineration, or even traditional composting, which releases large amounts of greenhouse gases (carbon dioxide and methane). His method of processing organic waste can also help companies meet sustainable development goals.
Yang said traditional composting also requires lots of land and is time-consuming, taking two to four months to complete the fermentation process. To solve this bottleneck, he uses specially chosen enzymes to decompose different categories of organic waste.
For example, plant enzymes can process urban green waste, wood chips, mushroom bags, and husks. Kitchen waste enzymes can process fruit and vegetable residues and raw and cooked kitchen waste; poultry and livestock enzymes can process various types of animal feces; and animal enzymes can decompose high-protein waste such as animal remains, viscera, or feathers.
Yang said the current “one-size-fits-all” treatment of organic waste does not work anymore. He advocates a more strategic approach, working with more than 8,000 strains of bacteria to produce enzymes specially suited to different types of waste, allowing large enterprises to process hundreds of tonnes of organic waste per day.
In addition to large-scale treatment, Tetanti AgriBiotech also develops small and medium-sized modular equipment suitable for schools, communities, and restaurants. Households can also purchase small-scale food waste composters with enzyme packages that speed up the fermentation process.
