COMPOSTING: waste that becomes fertility (and better food)

At Gandum, “organic waste” is not the end of the line. It is raw material. Composting transforms kitchen scraps and farm greens into compost that returns to the soil and improves the quality of what grows. The result is simple to understand: more living soil → tastier ingredients → better food on your plate.

What does this change for you?

• Food with more flavor: fertile, balanced soils tend to produce ingredients with better texture and flavor.

• A better-kept farm: less accumulated waste, more cleanliness, more organization in everyday life.

• Consistency in what you eat: the cycle closes within the place itself, instead of "disappearing" in a trash can.

What does this change for the environment (in practice)?

• Less waste sent to landfill: organic waste in landfills generates emissions; composting reduces this impact.

• More carbon in the soil: compost increases organic matter and helps the soil retain carbon instead of releasing it.

• Less need for industrial fertilizers: replaces part of external inputs, which have a larger footprint.

• More water retention: soils with more organic matter retain moisture better—and that counts for a lot in Alentejo.

How it works at Gandum

• Daily separation of organic waste (kitchen and operations).

• Managed composting to produce reliable natural fertilizer.

• Application in productive areas (vegetable gardens and agricultural systems) to return nutrients to the soil.

Essentially, it is a very unromantic but highly effective approach: making better use of what already exists. And when the soil improves, everything else follows suit—including your dining experience.