SINGAPORE – One man’s food waste can become a fish’s treasure with the WasteMaster system that will be rolled out at five Frasers Property Singapore malls.

The property company and Life Lab Resources, a Singapore food security solution provider, signed a memorandum of understanding on Jan 15 to start a programme to close the food waste loop through food waste valorisation among retail tenants.

Food waste valorisation works like upcycling. It transforms food waste into valuable material that can be reused as new products in the food production ecosystem, such as animal feed and fertiliser or, in this case, fish feed.

The WasteMaster, developed by Green Eco Technologies from Australia and operated by Life Lab Resources, is an on-site food waste processing system that turns food waste into an odourless but nutrient-rich material.

After food waste is loaded into the system, the machine mixes it with air to speed up decomposition while evaporating water in the waste. Unlike compost bins and digesters, the WasteMaster technology does not require water or bacteria to be added.

According to Green Eco Technologies, the system can reduce the volume and weight of food waste by up to 80 per cent while retaining its nutritional value and removing harmful germs.

The material can be reused to make commercial-grade fish feed at Life Lab Resources’ bio-refinery plant, and this will be trialled in the first quarter of 2024 at two fish farms. While the feed will not be given to fish meant for human consumption yet, Life Lab Resources hopes that this will be possible in the next year or so.

By turning food waste into useful material, the WasteMaster system reduces waste sent to incinerators and landfills. It also reduces the need to use new natural resources since the material can be reused, hence helping to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions.

According to the National Environment Agency (NEA), food waste accounted for around 11 per cent of the total waste generated in Singapore in 2022 and the recycling rate for food waste was 18 per cent.

From 2024, the Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources and NEA have made it mandatory for large commercial and industrial buildings that produce large amounts of food waste, such as hotels and malls, to separate their food waste from general waste for treatment.

The WasteMaster will be rolled out at five Frasers Property Singapore malls – Causeway Point, Waterway Point, Northpoint City, Century Square and Tampines 1 – in 2024.

The programme will potentially be expanded to other Frasers Property Singapore malls in 2025, pending Life Lab Resources’ bio-refinery trial, the cost of the programme in comparison to alternatives, and buy-in from tenants.

The programme at the five malls is expected to reduce up to 2,200 tonnes of food waste and save up to 660 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions a year.

This builds upon a successful food waste upcycling pilot scheme at Causeway Point that started in January 2023 and involved food and beverage outlets including Bali Thai, Food Republic and Ichiban Boshi, as well as FairPrice Finest supermarket. More than 27 tonnes of food waste were collected over the seven-month scheme.

The Jan 15 signing ceremony, held at Causeway Point, was witnessed by Minister of State for Trade and Industry Low Yen Ling, who encouraged more businesses to participate in innovative and collaborative efforts to reduce food waste.

“Today’s memorandum of understanding is a positive step towards reducing food waste in our landfills,” she said. “One of the key pillars of the Singapore Green Plan 2030 is sustainable living. Our goal is to achieve a circular economy with high rates of recycling, effective resource management, and waste reduction.”

Said Ms Soon Su Lin, chief executive officer of Frasers Property Singapore: “Partnership is key in our journey to tackling climate challenges and translating vision into action. So we need to work together across sectors and industries and leverage our collective strengths and innovations.”

Mr Edward Chia, managing director of Life Lab Resources, said the collaboration is symbolic of the ingenuity required to tackle sustainability and climate challenges head on.