borlahub

Reducing methane gas emissions from leftover food and other inedible parts such as (peel, pits, and bone) waste.  The % of Volatile solids (VS) in food waste varies but can be estimated to be 25%. Each kg of VS will produce 508 ± 21.5 [2] Litres CH4 resulting in a total estimated methane production of 1 Tonne of food waste of 127m3.  In Accra, Ghana an average of 15 kilograms of cooked food is left uneaten in each school with over thirty thousand schools this amounts to over 450 tonnes every day, including other inedible parts such as peel, pits, and bones all add up to 29% of municipal solid waste generated at schools. Globally it is estimated one-third of all the food produced in the world goes to waste. That’s the equivalent of 1.3 billion tons. the impacts of leftover food and inedible part waste on our climate and environment are enormous, since food that is never eaten still requires resources to grow, harvest, transport, cool, cook, or otherwise prepare – even when it ends up being disposed of, methane gas is generated  6% of global greenhouse emissions are from food loss and waste. According to the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), 8% of all wasted food comes from institutional and food service settings such as schools.in Ghana about half of the population is in schools and globally 23% of the world's population is in schools. some of the things that contribute to leftovers in schools include less lunchtime, inadequate involvement of students in food choices, lack of food waste audit, repeating the same menu for more than one day, and serving students more than they can eat.  

For the last year my team and I have been working in Ghana to implement an initiative aimed at doing three things: first creating environmentally conscious institutions (schools and restaurants) by educating and empowering them to segregate their leftovers and inedible organic waste from their solid waste materials, secondly, using mobile app, operating in an Uber-like mode in connecting borla taxis(tricycle motorbikes) to pick-up these leftovers and other inedible organic waste, thirdly,  transitioning piggery and black solider fly farmers from over-reliance on proceed feed towards the use of ethically sourced leftovers as feed.

We use our application to create content that educates schools and restaurants on the effects of leftovers and inedible organic waste on the environment and how to mitigate it, sign them up, and hail Borla taxis which are closer to pick up these leftovers and connect them to the piggery and black solider fly farmers nearby to sell.    

schools and restaurants today face three things: having inadequate knowledge of the effects of leftovers on the environment, not knowing where to channel these leftovers and logistical challenges.

So our approach involves educating and empowering them to gather these leftovers separately from other waste materials which makes it easy and safe to use less expensive machines such as tricycles and motorbikes in collection bridging the logistical gap and opening –up the whole haulage chain to everybody who can buy or own a tricycle motorbikes.  

We’re going to sell our services to basic, secondary, and tertiary schools, Borla taxis waste collectors, piggery and black soldier fly(BSF) farmers, starting in Accra Ghana. With over 30 thousand schools is estimated that 3% of solid waste generated in Ghana is from various schools. Recyclable waste constituted about 97.0 % of the schools’ waste flow: organic (29.0 %), paper (29.0 %) > plastic (18.0 %) > metal (13.0 %) > leather (5.0 %) > glass (4.0 %) > residual waste (2.0 %). currently, schools are faced with huge waste piled-ups and high disposal fees due to the waste management strategy which is mixing all kinds of waste materials in one waste bin. with our solution schools would have less waste building up onsite and a more effective waste disposal system, and schools- would become a much cleaner place. Not only is this beneficial to the health of staff and students, but it keeps schools well above legal standards and presents. It also promotes responsible waste habits in children schools play a vital role in teaching children how to deal with waste properly. By having an effective waste management strategy, show them how to reduce their waste production, how to keep areas clean, and how to recycle – building a more sustainable generation. Rushton [8] estimates that, annually, about 270 million waste collectors worldwide suffer from occupational injuries, accidents, and diseases, with about 2.3 million estimated to die annually from the hazardous effects of the job. we are de-risking and making it safe for Borla taxi waste collectors, besides that, would now have optimized routes and extra income. Lastly piggery and black soldier fly farmers who used to bear high feed costs and shortages would now benefit from reduced feed costs, which also help diversify the pigs' diet, which can lead to a more flavorful and nutritious end product and it helps to align the industry with the principles of sustainable farming.

The team consists of a school director, a teacher, a Borla taxi driver, and a piggery farmer this gives the team first-hand experience and relationship of the problem.  we are well-positioned to deliver this because of the experience and relationship we have gone through so developing the solution and delivering it was based on knowledge, research, and broader consultation with all stakeholders coupled with our personal experience on the problem.

we have built and launched our software, and we have onboarded 3000 schools, signed 300 Borla taxi riders, and 700 piggery farmers have taken a daily subscription plan. we have for the past year diverted 1 million tonnes of leftover and other inedible waste from landfills. we have helped these 3000 schools save $192,000.00 from their waste disposal fee, and we have increased Borla taxi riders' income by 70%. For the past year, we have generated a revenue of $270,000.00 as a business.

we are applying to build our technical capacities in area of the software development and marketing

Three main features that make our platform innovative are; sorting of waste materials at source makes it possible to extract recyclable materials before they are dumped in landfills. for schools, this helps to save money and also make their activities environmentally friendly. secondly, we enable separate waste collection:  before a collector is connected to a generator they must select the individual components of solid waste they are interested in collecting. this addresses the challenge of Lumping various waste components together in one truck.  The collection of individual components of solid waste from the source not only helps to recover, and reuse but ensures high-quality material for recycling, and through this, collectors can assess and minimize health risks in the collection sector and for industries is an opportunity to get clear and high-quality recyclable materials. lastly, data analytics, through the collection of data on the various menus, a food waste audit report is always sent to schools 

We use education as the first input; both students and staff are well-educated on the effects of lumping leftovers and inedible organic waste materials with other solid waste materials on the environment and our lives, we inform them on best practices regarding its disposals and how we can turn it to our benefits. to influence this behavioral change we reward students, and staff with excursions and school directors with cash if they meet the set tones. For Borla taxis, we help them by procuring tricycle motorbikes which they pay on a credit basis, though this is easy to own a tricycle motorbike, using the application also helps them to optimize their routes and save on fuel consumption. collecting fresh leftovers which are separated from other waste components helps to reduce their health risks and provides dignity to their activities hence encouraging more youth to be employed. Piggery farmers with a subscription plan on the application, stand to benefit from a reduction in 70% feed cost, have an alternative nutritious feed supply, convenience, and the opportunity to formally make their activities environmentally friend. this would help in the long run reduce the cost of animal protein in the country and also divert leftovers from landfills that decompose and generate methane gas which destroys the environment.   

         https://www.tabledebates.org/blog/using-food-waste-pig-feed#

Our impact goals include reducing methane gas emitted from leftover food from various educational institutions in Ghana and this can be measured from the tones of leftover food collected for piggery farmers or black soldier fly producers. this aligned with SDGs 13

Also increasing decent jobs for the youth; can be measured by the number of youth and women directly or indirectly employed it helps to achieve SDGs 8

lastly; we help piggery farmers save on their feed costs hence leading to a reduction in the price of animal protein

we are using a web and mobile application, with access to the internet either on the personal computer or mobile phone schools can sign up, by entering the school`s name and password, and the software uses a Global Positioning System (GPS ) to track the location of their entity remotely, we also used this technology to hail Borla taxis to pick-up the leftovers and inedible parts. the Borla taxis would have to weigh and enter the quantity of material picked in the platform before being directed to other locations or channeled to the piggery and BSF farmers. our farmers would have to sign -up with their farm names, and phone numbers, enter the number of animals in the farms, or quantity needed, and passwords. they take a feed supply plan subscription( daily and weekly) GPS technology is used to track their farm location. payment can be done physically or through the platform. 

Full-time staff  15

Part-time  20

contractors 0

we have been working on the solution for the past three years, it started with a three-man team i.e myself and the other two co-founders 

The Borlahub Code of Ethics outlines the fundamental principles and ethical standards that guide our operations and interactions. It reinforces our commitment to uphold the highest standards of conduct, integrity, diversity equity, inclusion, and corporate responsibility in all aspects of our business.

Borlahub is an equal employment opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment and will not be discriminated against based on race, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, disability, age, genetic information, veteran status, ancestry, or national or ethnic origin.

we strive to uphold the principles of diversity, equity, and inclusion and are committed to anti-racism in all the work we do

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through Borlahub schools are not only benefiting from saving money on their waste disposals and clear environment but also stand the chance of influencing the next generation on zero-waste. For Borla taxis, we not only optimize their routes which helps them to save money through less fuel consumption, and minimize the safety and health risks in their line of operation but also increase their revenue. For piggery farmers and BSF farmers, we are providing alternative nutrition sources, convenience, and affordability. we make all these happen through our application and the larger benefit is reducing  methane gases in the atmosphere   

we have devised a monetization strategy that benefits all stakeholders. We charge a  25% commission   on each kilogram of leftovers sold, creating a sustainable revenue stream that ensures our missions thrive