Garbage plant in Duhok produces organic fertilizer from food waste

DUHOK, November 28 — A garbage collection facility in Duhok has started producing two types of organic fertilizer from food waste in an effort to support trees in the region.

There are three garbage collection facilities in Duhok with over 1,500 workers involved in pickups across the city and its outskirts.

Hazem Bak, Director of the Kwashi Waste Lab in Semel, told 964, “Our lab produces over five tons of fertilizer each day from food leftovers such as vegetables, fruits, and food materials suitable for strengthening trees. The waste is spread over large areas for two to three months, then food remnants are separated and transformed into two types of fertilizer.”

“One, of lower quality, is sold by the ton, while the other, of higher quality, is sold by the kilogram,” he said. “A high-quality fertilizer bag weighs 10 kilograms and is sold for 4,000 Iraqi dinars, while the lower-quality type is sold for approximately 16,000 dinars per ton.”