Sustainable food and farming part V: Ecological \”rule\” number two – waste equals food


In my last post I examined Mother Earth\’s Rule Number One: Use Current Solar Income.  Now lets look at Rule Number Two: Waste Equals Food.  Okay, so if you are not familiar with the concept of ecological rules (or perhaps more properly \”design principles based on natural systems\”), or if you are just not a person who responds well to rules (like many of us with \”authority problems\”), you might wonder what all this \”rule stuff\” is all about.

Good question…….  lets start with another question.  How are we (humans) doing as a species?  Well, quantitatively quite well.  There are A LOT OF US roaming around the planet.  But how about qualitatively?  Lets think about our quality of life and ask again \”how are we doing?\”

I know lots of people who will hesitate to answer that question with a roaring \”GREAT!\” There seems to be a low level of discontent among many people I know.  Some of the symptoms of discontent may be seen in overuse and abuse of alcohol, pharmaceuticals, shopping, recreational sex, video games….. you know \”distractions.\”

Leslie Howard explained this to Betty Davis in the classic 1936 film, Petrified Forest. Here is a one minute clip from the film:

So the cause of \”world chaos\” is nature fighting back, huh?  Fighting back against human pursuit of \”distractions\” perhaps?  But what are we being distracted from?

Well, lets turn that question around and ask \”what is our/my purpose in life?\”  Do I have one?  Can I clearly state a reason for getting out of the bed in the morning?  If not, well then \”distractions\” sort of make sense.

Well, for me \”ecological rules\” are derived from my understanding of where I fit in the world.  My own sense of purpose comes from a worldview that places me (an individual) as an integral component of a hierarchical system of increasing complexity from cells, to organs and organisms (the individual), through the family, community, ecosystem, earth, universe, and divine.  In this complex living system – I belong.

I\’ll explore this idea more in a future blog, but for now lets just say that I\’m an ecological being……  and therefore, I ought to pay attention to ecological rules.  The rules, borrowed from architect William McDonough, suggested in an earlier blog were:

  1. Use current solar income
  2. Everything cycles (waste equals food)
  3. Enhance biological diversity

In this post, we are looking at Rule Number Two!

Here I am again in my Sustainable Living class at the University of Massachusetts talking about \”waste equals food\”:

So, waste equals food….. at least in my household.  But how does this apply to farming.  Well lets think of a farm as an agricultural ecosystem.   We might depict it like this:


So, an agroecosystem is a geographically bounded place on earth (a field, farm or watershed for example) that has been designed and managed by humans for a specific purpose such as growing food.  It exists in relationship with an external environment.  On most farms, inputs like sunshine, perhaps fertilizer, water and seed flow in.  Food and other \”stuff\” flow out.


When that other stuff is clean, no problem.  But when soil, nutrients, or pesticides flow out….. big problem!  Agroecosystems that are \”leaky\” are not designed well.  This situation is typical of many industrial farms that are really good at growing food, but not so good at preventing harmful waste products from flowing downstream and required lots of inputs.  By optimizing the system for continuously using and reusing energy and nutrients within the system the system becomes more efficient.


In this model, the system produces food, but minimizes waste and requires fewer inputs because energy and nutrients are recycled within the system (waste equals food).

But, can this really happen on the farm?  Sure, but it takes farm managers willing to pay attention to detail.  Here is a clip from a workshop at Simple Gifts Farm in Amherst, Massachusetts (with an apology for the sound quality – it was a windy day).

That\’s right….. waste equals food at Simple Gifts Farm.

Can you think of other ways of cycling nutrients and energy on a farm?  How about in your own life?


I’d appreciate it if you would share this post with your friends.  And for more ideas, videos and challenges along these lines, please join my Facebook Group; Just Food Now.  And go here for the rest of this series of posts.