Page 9 - D11 Dainfern Precinct Living December 2021
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PRECINCT LIVING
Africa in order to help to resolve HOW DID HE ACHIEVE THIS IN
the water shortage issues that we SUCH A SHORT TIME?
frequently experience here. Himkaar has devised a multi-pronged
approach to achieving his soil-
He founded The Compost Kitchen enrichment quest, which has evolved
in April 2019. Two years later, he considerably since the inception of his
was listed as one of the Top 300 start-up.
Best Practices on Sustainability in
the world at the 5th Global Entreps Firstly, he has a network of
Awards, which partners with the homeowners (mainly in Dainfern,
United Nations. Fourways, Bryanston and Midrand)
who provide their kitchen waste for
composting. This is distributed amongst
a number of earthworm farms at The
Compost Kitchen’s depot located
just outside Diepsloot. The resulting
vermicompost (earthworm faeces)
is bagged manually – as a way of
providing employment for some of the
locals.
Education is another facet of Himkaar’s
multi-pronged mission. For the schools, Vermicompost for vegetable gardens.
he has designed a nifty kit that teachers The machine has a grinder, a UV
New iCompost machine. can use to demonstrate how worm steriliser, a drier, a fan and an air filter
farming works. Called the Wormy World to prevent odours. It’s compact and
Worm Farm, it has glass panels on both easy to keep clean – and the bucket
sides of soil packed with earthworms, used inside can be washed in the
which is packaged in a branded box for dishwasher.
easy handling.
“The advantage of daily composting
“I hope to establish an Education is that it prevents mould build-up,
Centre at a later stage, to spread the odours and those troublesome flies,”
word about the need for soil enrichment Himkaar adds. “The moisture is heated
in this region to a much wider audience,” and evaporated, the UV sterilises the
he says. organic matter, and the result is a
dry-ish, crumbly compost that can be
EMPOWERING HOMEOWNERS spread around the garden or added to
The most important project that pot plants.”
Himkaar is undertaking right now is
providing home composting solutions “The iCompost machine is currently
that allow homeowners to make their made overseas, but long-term, I would
own compost daily, with minimal mess. like to find a manufacturer who can
This is not a solution that involves produce it locally. On pre-order, it
spending hours out in the hot sun, retails for R4 500 and an initial batch
torrential rain or freezing conditions – of 600 machines is up for grabs – with
Easy composting with technology. it’s a solution that can be added to your delivery scheduled for mid-March
appliances in the kitchen or set up near 2022.”
a plug point in the garage. It’s called the
iCompost machine. “Ideally, it would be great if there
was an iCompost machine in every
“Most people who like to cook generate home – then we really would make an
vegetable and fruit waste on a daily enormous difference to the soil quality
basis,” Himkaar explains. “The iCompost in this country!”
machine is perfect for dealing with this
kind of waste as it’s quiet, efficient and
fast. It takes up to 1kg of organic waste If you would like to contact
at a time. All you need to do is add Himkaar Singh, visit:
the composting activator, and set it in www.icompost.co.za or email:
motion at night – and in the morning, info@compostkitchen.com.
Finished compost from iCompost. you have compost.”
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