Hyderabad Pavani Lolla has created the Vapra Odor-Free Home Composter, an innovative solution that transforms kitchen waste into compost in just seven days.

Hyderabad-based Pinnaka Padma, a passionate gardener with over 1,000 plants on her terrace, often needed compost in bulk to nourish her green space. During her experimentation with various composting techniques, she discovered a portable composting machine that turns organic waste into compost in just seven days, much faster than traditional methods that take 45 to 60 days. "What fascinated me was that you can dump any kind of organic waste, including vegetable peels and leftover food like rice and chapati, and get compost in just seven days," says the 59-year-old urban gardener, who has been using the machine for the past three months.

"Usually, waste composting leaves a bad smell in the house. However, with the machine, I received a composting mix that eliminates the odor. I have also noticed that the quality of the compost is excellent for my plants," she adds.

Pavani Lolla, the innovator behind the Vapra Odour-Free Home Composter and Green Mix, has developed a solution that allows households to compost their waste in just seven days!

We sat down with Pavani Lolla to learn more about her innovative solution designed to divert organic waste from landfills.

Towards a Landfill-Free India
While studying engineering at Vignana Bharathi Institute of Technology in Hyderabad, Pavani was an active member of the Eco Club, a student forum focused on raising awareness about sustainability and promoting eco-friendly practices.

As part of the project, Pavani and her team visited a nearby village to raise awareness about efficiently segregating waste. When they asked villagers why they preferred dumping waste instead of segregating it at home, they responded that it all ended up mixed in landfills anyway, so segregation seemed pointless," she recalls.

While the others soon forgot about the incident after returning to college, Pavani could not shake the thought. "I wondered how we could solve this problem. I thought, why not build a machine that could handle segregated waste at the household level?" says the 26-year-old.

Towards the end of her college years, Pavani realized a major concern. “While plastic waste is often the focus, we tend to ignore the issues caused by organic waste. Around 60 percent of household waste is organic, and its irresponsibly dumped in landfills. As it decomposes, it releases methane gas, contributing to global warming,” she highlights.

“Meanwhile, people in urban areas often spend a lot on organic fertilizers, as many cannot make compost at home due to its complex process. It involves layering kitchen waste and soil, and it requires weeks of patience,” she explains.

Pavani saw the challenge of organic waste as an opportunity. In 2020, she developed an innovative composter that not only tackled the problem of organic waste disposal but also aimed to integrate composting into people daily lives.

That same year, she co-founded Future Steps with peers Mahesh U and Siddhesh Sakore to commercialize the composter.

Pavani Lollas Solution for Quick and Odor-Free Waste Disposal

Pavani home composting kit can handle up to 1 kg of organic waste daily. Designed for balconies, the portable composter can be placed anywhere, just like a regular dustbin. Priced at Rs 3,500, the food waste composter comes with a 2 kg pack of green mix powder.

Explaining how it works, she says, “Our kit includes a rotating composter and a 2 kg pack of green mix powder. On day 1, add the entire pack of green mix powder to the composter, then pour in 400 ml of water and mix it by hand. You can add any type of kitchen waste, including fruit peels, leftover rice, and roti. Once the waste is added, close the lid and rotate or spin the composter five times.”

Pavani highlights the advantages of her composter over traditional methods. “Typically, composting takes 45 to 60 days, but with this method, we can prepare compost in just seven days. We do not artificially raise the temperature; it is all part of a natural process,” she explains.

"One major issue with composting is the ammonia smell that arises as food waste breaks down into nitrogen. Our green mix eliminates this odor, allowing you to recycle waste at home without any discomfort," Pavani explains.

She also shares that the composter can convert up to 30 kg of kitchen waste into valuable compost each month. To date, Future Steps has sold over 6,000 composting kits across Telangana, Maharashtra, New Delhi, and Karnataka.

Reflecting on the mission that drove her innovation, Pavani says, “At first, people hesitate to handle waste, but when I do it without hesitation, they often ask why I take this step.”

"Many times, my friends and family question my decision, but my work motivates me every day to tackle Indias growing waste problem. It will take years, but it is rewarding to take the first step and turn trash into something useful," she adds.

Edited by Gayathri