Food Wastage has become a serious problem these days. In fact, according to the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations, one-third of the food produced in the world is wasted. This is primarily because we ourselves fail to understand how much food we consume, or we don’t know how to recycle or reuse the food that has been left over from previous meals. However, this is an issue that designers have been paying immense attention to nowadays. In an attempt to combat food wastage and to promote zero waste living, they have been coming up with innovative kitchen appliances! These products provide unique solutions to curb the wastage of food on a daily basis. They make zero waste living a reality. From a kitchen appliance that converts all your food waste into nutrient-rich soil, to a unique triangle-shaped food-waste processor – these kitchen appliances are all you need to end food wastage in your home once and for all!
1. Bubble
Designed by Savin Dimov and Altino Alex, Bubble is a food tracker, that monitors our food consumption, in an attempt to encourage a healthier lifestyle and to reduce food wastage. The food tracker comes with an app compatible with your smartphone. You can either order your groceries via the app or physically visit a grocery store and do your shopping. Once you’re home, you can place your groceries such as fruits, vegetables, milk, sodas, etc within Bubble. Bubble identifies and tracks all the items within. It directly sends updates to your smartphone, so you’re always aware of what’s in your kitchen! You can track which food products you consume the most, and what you consume the least. Bubble ensures all the storage data is at the tip of your fingers.
2. The Alone Food-Waste Processor
Rather than living with that old, rancid, smelly trash for 3-4 days, the Alone food-waste processor helps provide a discreet way of disposing of small amounts of food at a time. Its unique right-angled triangular shape helps it easily fit into a corner of your kitchen, and its tall design makes it easy to remove the waste bin and chuck your stuff in without bending over too much. The Alone food-waste processor then proceeds to break down your food, turning it from waste into a harmless, odorless, nutrient-rich fertilizer you can use in your own backyard or kitchen garden. A heating plate at the base helps accelerate the composting process, breaking food down into a crumbly mulch for as little as 30 days (instead of the regular 5-6 months).
3. Po
Gabriel Steinmann created P0 (pronounced pio like the letter and number) which stands for ‘project zero’ – a storage and shopping solution for food that aims to reduce consumption emissions. P0 helps us to switch to and maintain a plant-based diet and reduce the amount of food waste. The design blends organic and sustainable materials with an earthy aesthetic to invoke warmth and a more personal relationship with the items we use. Its ceramic body and textile lining help encourage a deeper appreciation for the food we consume and make us more aware of how much food we actually need to minimize wasting it. It is also a practical and attractive utensil in your kitchen – “a symbol of change, of becoming a little bit more human,” as rightly described by Steinmann.
4. Serva & FOSA® NFC Food Preservation System
The Serva & FOSA® NFC Food Preservation System is the ultimate system to ensure that your food remains fresh always. It keeps your food fresh longer than any conventional storage method could! Serva is a nifty little device that you attach to the food storage container. It utilizes NFC to connect with the use-friendly app on your smartphone. The app displays the food in your kitchen, and its shelf life. You can also share this information with others! These little devices are waterproof, and don’t need battery to function. They can last forever! FOSA® is a system of vaccum-sealable storage containers that can be stacked on top of each other. This tracking and storage system keeps your food fresh and healthy, while ensuring that your fridge is neat and organized.
5. The Clay Pantry
Clay has been used since ancient times as a storage solution for food and drinks, having grown up in India it is a big part of the culture and in fact, water stored in clay pots is always cooler (and sweeter!). The cooling effect is due to the porosity of earthenware which has natural cooling properties when soaked with water. Clay Pantry optimizes this property to give you a range of storage containers for small, urban homes. The Root Stool provides dry and dark storage space and the Tempered Box was created for produce that needs humid and cool conditions. The Fruit Shelf and Water Jug are self-explanatory. Clay Pantry’s modular nature makes it a perfect fit for compact apartments and for those looking for an eco-friendly storage solution for their produce.
6. The Terracooler
The Terracooler is a modern interpretation of the traditional Zeer pot or pot-in-pot refrigerator, an evaporative cooling refrigeration device that has been used for centuries and is still used today in countries across the globe, such as India and Nigeria. Like many designers today, Perry felt compelled to design her Terracooler after learning that 10% of household energy is taken up by domestic refrigerators. However, in the UK, where Perry is based, 14 million tons of food waste is accumulated each year. The Terracooler was designed by Perry to make sense of that perplexing ratio.
7. The FoodCycler
Eco-friendly and highly efficient, the Food Recycler is exactly that, it takes your food scraps and turns them into nutrient-rich soil, converting waste into resource. The FoodCycler reduces the food waste by up to 90% and provides the perfect soil for your garden, no matter how big or small. The system is straightforward – the device comes with a removable internal bucket which must be full before beginning the cycle. Taking only 3 hours to catalyze and produce fresh soil, the FoodCyler is practically always ready to go. On top of that, the device itself has a very clean look to it. With the inverted handle on the top lid, the FoodCycler has a perfect rectangular shape with some cozy edges to accentuate that open design aesthetic – welcome and ready for anyone to use.
8. Savel Flexible Food Saver
The Savel Flexible Food Saver is a smart alternative to the usual plastic zipper storage bags! The plastic zippers need to be thrown away after a single use, but Savel keeps the leftover fruits and vegetables in your kitchen as fresh as possible, and can be used for a long long time! It also helps you save and use the smaller items that are usually thrown away like a lemon wedge, or a single lime. Its flexible and bendable form allows it to perfectly fit against the curved cut side of any fruit or vegetable. You then place the silicon strap over the piece of fruit or veggie, securing Savel and the food item in place. It keeps your food fresh for upto a week!
9. Zero Waste Kitchen
This zero-waste kitchen is built from recycled stainless steel made in electric arc furnaces and it lasts forever. The large table is the core of the design, it is meant to be used as a cooking and eating surface. The structure has designated areas for glass containers, baskets for fruit and vegetables, a worm box, storage space for multi-purpose vessels, linen bags, and a vertical herb garden – it is indeed a highly functional and multi-faceted design! The worm box regularly provides humus which can be used for the herb garden and if the kitchen is in a dark area of the house or if you live in a country with little sunlight then you might need a daylight lamp for your herb garden.
10. The Mobile Thermoelectric Refrigerator
The Mobile thermoelectric refrigerator has been engineered to be durable, rugged, and look innovative. The chassis of the refrigerator is constructed in a way that allows the top-chilling unit to be removed while the bottom refrigeration unit is being transported. The chiller uses the water and heat transfer to cool the milk while excess warm water can be used for cleaning and bathing – and that is how it reduces the waste of resources too! The chassis is crafted from anodized aluminum to keep it lightweight and strong. It features an airless wheel system to avoid flats on rough terrain which also utilizes a regenerative hub that powers a battery to keep things cool while on the road. The multifunctional handle design makes it comfortable for the user to pull the refrigerator by hand while walking or even attach it to a bicycle or motorcycle for rapid transport.
