Researchers at Waterloo Engineering have developed new technology to convert wasted food into a clean substitute for fossil fuels.

The system engineers natural fermentation to yield a chemical called carboxylate, which can be used to produce fuel and chemicals for products including drugs and plastic packaging instead of those derived from petroleum.

“The amount of food we waste is staggering,” said Hyung-Sool Lee, a professor of civil and environmental engineering, and director of the Waterloo Environmental Biotechnology Lab. “That’s what motivated me to find a better way to utilize it to mitigate the damage caused by fossil fuels.”