Sweet smell of sucess: Engineering graduates look to make rose water from flower waste

Can you imagine stinking waste being turned into rose water, incense sticks and cement? Unbelievable?

Believe it, because this could become a reality in Ahmedabad soon. Two young local boys are on a novel mission to recycle flower waste into organic compost.

“As of now, we are collecting flower waste from 55 temples. Soon, we are going to produce rose water and later incense sticks from rose petals after drying them,” said Yash Bhatt, who started Brook and Blooms with Arjun Thakkar. The LD Engineering College graduates have also developed a compost machine.

From 1000 kg of waste, they can make around 120 kg to 150 kg organic compost.

According to Manvita Baradi of the Urban Management Centre, the first step is to segregate waste well.   “There are many options available. But segregation and recycling need to be tackled efficiently. If this is done well, the residue will be minimal and totally manageable.”

There are 25 societies in Bodakdev who recycle their kitchen waste into organic compost.