Established in the eighth century, Ye Olde Fighting Cocks Pub in the City of St Albans, Hertfordshire, was purchased in 2012 by Christo Tafelli. While committed to preserving the pub’s history, Christo also endeavoured to create the greenest and most costefficient pub in all of England.
To accomplish these seemingly opposing goals, he oversaw a £1 million renovation that included the installation of a cardboard baler, a glass crusher, and an LFC-70 biodigester to lessen lorry collections, shrink landfill deposits, and reduce the pub’s carbon footprint.
“At Pub 18 trade show in London I learned about different technologies to save space and go green, including the LFC biodigester,” he explains. “The maths made sense. In the first week, I eliminated three food waste collections. Multiplied by 52 weeks, I spent £26,000 last year on overall waste removal with about 20% for food waste. That’s about £5,000 a year I’ll save. The biodigester will pay for itself quickly.”
Manufactured by Power Knot, the LFC-70 turns between 70-125Kg (150-280 lb) of food waste per day into drain-safe ‘grey’ water, noiselessly, safely and odour-free. Christo also avoids storing of food waste and potentially attracting vermin or exposing customers to unsavoury smells, particularly during warm weather. Previously, a 2,400 litre-bin would hold a week’s worth of food waste. The LFC-70 has eliminated the bin and associated drawbacks.
Made of stainless steel, the LFC-70 biodigester stands 108 cm tall and operates quietly and odour-free 24/7. Users open a lid to add food into the unit’s internal U-shaped vessel which is equipped with a horizontallyoriented agitator that rotates slowly. Porous plastic Powerchips that remain in the vessel at all times contain and distribute Powerzyme self-replenishing microbes and enzymes which accelerate the decomposition process, together with automatic infusions of hot and cold water and oxygen.
The biodigester decomposes food aerobically (with oxygen), producing only water, CO2, and heat to 42 degrees C, further speeding decomposition. The CO2 generated is part of the natural cycle of carbon generation from plants, making the process carbon neutral. Food waste, which can be added to the continuous process at any time, is fully digested within 24 hours, and gravity-discharged into the drain as harmless grey water.
Using the unit’s touch screen, Christo can access information on drum temperature, door openings, water volume, water temperature, CO2 emissions avoided, service reminders, and weight of the food waste digested by hour, day, week, month and year. The data is available on any smart device, laptop, or computer via the cloud.
