(MENAFN- Muscat Daily) Muscat- Oman Avenues Mall has come up with a novel way to convert food waste into a value-added resource.
Nutrient-rich compost produced from the mall's organic waste is the secret behind the success of a garden setting that now adorns the spacious outdoor balcony area on the second floor of the mall.
Avenues Children's Garden, as the new leafy outdoor area is called, complements the equally charming Muscat Garden Center Nursery, where an array of herbaceous perennials also thrive on the home-grown compost. Located side by side, both garden and nursery add a new flavour to the mall's diverse shopping, retail and dining offerings. The twin facilities were formally inaugurated this week under the patronage of H H Sayyida Dr Muna bint Fahd bin Mahmood al Said, assistant vice chancellor for International Cooperation, Sultan Qaboos University.
Officials representing Oman Avenues Mall and Themar Group, which owns the Muscat Garden Center Nursery, were in attendance as well. Underpinning the Avenues Children's Garden initiative is a strong environmental and educational theme targeted at school children, according to Ben Watson, general manager, Oman Avenues Mall.
'Far more than just a green space, this garden offers a unique opportunity for children to understand the importance of waste minimisation and reuse, as well as learning some simple gardening techniques,' said Watson. 'Placed within the garden are 30 planter boxes with soil and compost made from a tonne of food waste collected from the mall. We have invited children from a diverse mix of schools around the city to participate in the planting of vegetables, and herbs in their very own planter boxes. Members of the public will be able to visit the garden to check on how the plants adopted by each school are faring.'
Joining hands with Avenues Children's Garden is the Muscat Garden Center Nursery. They are giving away a small potted plant and activity book to any child who visits the garden.
The gesture, said Dr Amer Awadh al Rawas, founder and chairman of Themar Group, which runs the nursery, is in line with the group's advocacy of environmental sustainability through gardening initiatives.
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