Each Spaniard generates more than 400 kilos of domestic waste per year. A significant part ends up in the organic waste bin: fruit peels, vegetable remains, coffee grounds, small food leftovers or food fragments that disappear almost without us realizing it. However, when the waste from millions of homes is added up, the result is enormous. In weight, in contamination, in odors…
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) estimates that approximately one third of the food produced for human consumption is lost or wasted at some point in the food chain. And, once they arrive home, the problem is greater: According to the United Nations, 60% of food waste occurs in homes. Only in Europe we are talking about 129 kilos per year per person.
With this in mind, in recent years devices that attempt to manage a portion of this waste directly at home have begun to become popular. Among them are the so-called organic waste shredders, a rare technology in Spain.. The question is simple: is it worth getting one?
Unlike a home composter, which transforms organic waste into compost through biological processes that can last weeks or months, a waste disposal is installed under the sink and acts immediately. When we introduce food remains, a grinding system reduces them to very small particles that are dragged by the water towards the sanitation network..
Dreame’s SF25 belongs to this category. It is installed under the sink and is designed to process common kitchen scraps such as fruit peels, vegetables, rice, pasta, fish scraps or small amounts of meat, small bones, hard cheeses, etc. One of its main arguments is comfort. Instead of storing organic waste for days, especially problematic in summer due to odors, it eliminates it as soon as it is generated.
To this we must add that, in addition to the volume it occupies, it has another characteristic: it is the fraction that degrades most quickly. That means bad odors, the appearance of insects and the proliferation of microorganisms if it is not managed properly. Reducing that buildup can improve kitchen hygiene and decrease the frequency with which the organic waste bin needs to be emptied. In homes where cooking is done daily and several people live, this advantage is easily noticeable.
Now, the SF25 has some differentiating features. In technical terms, it has a variable speed motor and a multi-stage grinding system designed to obtain very fine particles and this is important because the smaller the particles, the the lower the risk of blockages in the pipes. In this case we are talking about sand texture. The fact that the filter is washable makes its use even easier..
It also has electronic sensors that monitor operation and detect possible blockages due to debris that obstructs the blades. To this we must add an automatic cleaning system and silent operation, not imperceptible, but bordering on it. But What I liked most is that its active carbon filter prevents bad odors (it does so very effectively) and its design It allows you to take it out of the sink and put it on the side of the coffee maker, for example. Of course, we must have a spacious kitchen: it does not take up as much space as a microwave (almost half) but it is present.
So is it worth it? Depends. If we live in a town or a small city, if we have a garden and we want to use the remains for composting, this system does not do that. For this It takes a process of several days, even weeks.
On the other hand, if we live in a city, if we have pets, if organic waste easily accumulates, SF25 reduces waste by 90% in size and makes it much easier to manage, whether throwing it in a garbage bag or down the sink thanks to its small size and organic nature. It can also be useful in second homes or apartments where organic waste remains accumulated for several days before it can be removed.
The Dreame SF25 is not intended to solve the global problem of food waste. What it offers is a more comfortable, faster and hygienic way to manage the part for which we are responsible and reduce the load on large management centers.