SFWO

I. Ideation

You know when I was younger, my mother used to scare me with this story:

(I don’t know if it’s entirely real)

But it’s that a certain country, once known for its rich agriculture and trade, is now malnourished and impoverished because of the way they used to dispose of
food.

According to my mother, their waste management system was weak, so it was most convenient for them to just dump plentiful and plentiful of rice down…. the
toilet.

That in a way, perhaps God punished them for not being thankful enough.

But then again, my mother also used to say that if I didn’t finish my plate, the food would run after me on the day of judgement

To somewhat back up my mother’s story, I have read in articles that Foods Thrown Away in ***this country*** Are Enough to Solve Its Malnourishment
Problem.

The devastating part is that, we, a country blessed with oil and natural resources and a strong education system and most importantly the religion of Islam, come
up almost directly under this country when it comes to food waste. Based on a study conducted by the Saudi Grains Organization (SAGO), **around 33 percent
of our food goes to waste, worth over SR40.4 billion, annually.**

I watched a random YouTube video where they said that food waste is actually the DUMBEST problem in the world because nobody ACCTUALLY WANTS
TO WASTE FOOD.

I mean we all throw away food remorsefully, “God please forgive me for this…” ***bloop in the trash***

Or at events (us Saudis love extravagance), there’s only so much food you can give away and then you don’t really know what to do with the rest of it.

In Saudi Arabia, food waste continues to be a pressing issue with an estimated 15% of all food purchased annually being thrown away. This not only results in a
significant financial loss for households and businesses, but also contributes to the depletion of resources and increasing greenhouse gas emissions, exacerbating
the country's environmental challenges. Urgent action is needed to reduce the amount of food waste generated in the country and ensure a more sustainable
future. Saudi Arabia depends heavily upon exports from other countries to meet its food requirements

II. Proposed Solution

Our current environment is a reflection of the excessive amount of power and control humans have over nature. Our actions resonate deeply with the health of
our planet, and one significant facet of our impact lies in the detrimental consequences of food waste. The Saudi Food Waste Organization (SFWO) emerges as
a beacon of change, for food waste not only represents a squandering of resources but also exacts a heavy toll on the delicate balance of our ecosystem. We
aspire to mitigate these environmental repercussions by fostering a culture of mindful consumption and responsible waste management.

Technology is ever-evolving and suprising us. As Arthur Clarke once said, “Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic”

You may have heard of compost machines today, I’m taking BIGGG compost machines, once where you throw in absoltley anything (egg shells, onion and
banana peels etc.. and it will transform it into an organic fertilizer that could be used for growing fruits, vegetables, and flowers)

And so my solution would be as follows:

1. Strategically place containers, where people can dump their food waste, close to house household communities & places with a high abundance of food
waste. (I don’t have much time to delve deep into the idea, but these containers are obiosuly not normal trash cans: they’re well closed so that eliminate foul
smells and keep the food waste preserved for as long as possible & they’re easy to move around).
2. Compost the food waste using the machines
3. Sell the compost to local farmers
4. Sell the produce that was planted from our compost, outsourced by local farms

And in a way, “close the circle” → Food → Food Waste → Compost → More Food

“There is no wrong way to do the right thing.” — Janaya Future Khan