#45 - Fermenting Trash in the Kitchen

I think the whole world should be doing this! - AlisonIt just makes everything more pleasant with your food waste - there is no rotting, no flies. - TjasaYou know that Alison is always fermenting weird and strange things but when she told me she was fermenting her trash - it was a new level. I had to know more.A little over a year ago, Alison off-hand mentioned something she called bokashi, and I had to ask her, "What IS that?" It turns out bokashi is the Japanese word for compost, and Alison had purchased a tool that she used to ferment her food waste - even bones & fat, anything she didn't use or that went bad - into compost tea and compost, which she was using in her porch garden. As you have seen on her instagram, she produced some incredible vegetables with the help of that nutrient dense lacto fermented suplementation for her plants. I know that any purchase Alison makes is extremely well thought-out and researched and, yes, she did her research on the bokashi process. She read books, watched videos, explored DIY options, and she did her due diligence to study this two-bucket system that we are going to talk today, as well as the inoculant that she adds to the food waste to compost it.This fermentation process can be done in the house, it has no smell, it doesn't attract fruit flies, and you can use the compost and the compost tea in your big garden, small garden and more. In this episode, Alison and I will explain the process of fermenting waste, the bacterial inoculant that is used to ferment the food waste so efficiently and completely, and then we will actually interview the US and Canada supplier that makes the two-bucket system that Alison is using. Alison will ask her some more technical questions and we will come back to wrap up, and you can get about your day fermenting your trash!Check out the Bokashi system here, and use the code AKP for 10% off!Want more? Come be part of our community and help support the continued work of the podcast! Our podcast is sponsored by our patrons and listeners who are also supported by the extra content that we share (think exclusive podcasts, live chats, cook ups and recipes) over at our Patreon community!From $5 a month (or equivalent in your currency) you'll be helping us with the costs of recording, editing and putting this work out into the world. And you'll get to be part of our community on a deeper level. What We Talk About:2:29 What we had to eat!08:24 A review from Ester @wolfdaughterdarling12:24 Let's talk about bokashi! Alison's experience and why she was inspired to talk about this on the podcast35:00 The US Giveaway (open until Nov 29 2022)"A non-stop ferment of your kitchen waste."37:32 Alison's interview with Tjasa38:33 What is Bokashi?39:09 What is "EM", and how does it work in bokashi?40:25 How are the microorganisms used in the bokashi bucket?41:15 Is there a smell to bokashi fermenting in our kitchens? Fermentation vs Rotting42:34 Using bokashi in a small apartment vs on a farm or larger household45:23 What do the Effective Microorganisms do to compost?48:08 The rules of bokashi composting and how it differs from conventional waste composting54:40 How do you see bokashi making a difference in a larger scale?01:01:14 Teraganix discount code & the giveaway