China is in the midst of a waste epidemic. According to Global Entrepreneur magazine, China produces over 30% of the world’s garbage. Food waste is one of the biggest problems for garbage treatment all over the world, however in China it accounts for 50% of the nation's garbage.

Last week, Shanghai’s Tongji University, in collaboration with Insinkerator and Noppen, released the results of a yearlong research study on the environmental impacts of Food Waster Disposers and their appropriateness for the Chinese market. The study found that FWDs would not, as they worried, lead to a overloading of the Shanghai sewage system or blockages in the pipes. They also found that the environmental improvement would be significant. In the US the Food Waste Disposal is a common tool used to reduce kitchen waste. Approximately 50% of households and 80% of new households have one.

The device allows you to dump food waste down sink drain, whereby it grinds it up and flushes it down the pipe. It's an effective tool for environmental conservatism, as it first and foremost it means less garbage going into landfills. It also converts the waste into fertilizer by filtering the nutrient rich matter out of sewage.

Could this be a simple solution in cutting down China's garbage problem? As China becomes increasingly urbanized, dealing with the ever growing waste problem will become even more of a pressing issue. Finding products to offset the increased waste production will be of large importance.