As fun as the food scrap recycling party may be, not everything from our kitchens is invited into the compost bin. For example, a few kitchen items NOT welcome to the party are the things you place in your comingled recycling bin, like plastic, glass, or metal containers. These materials do not biodegrade and will contaminate the compost.
The good news is that ALL FOOD, including waste from paper tea bags, coffee grounds, and meat or fish bones, can be composted by the Village! Just make sure to remove staples, stickers, or rubber bands before tossing them in. It’s up to you whether you use a compostable liner for your bins, or if you prefer to skip them, just rinse your bin as needed. And make sure you never add a plastic or Ziploc bag directly to the Village’s food waste collection bins. Plastic of any kind is definitely not invited to the party!
Sorting our waste can be tricky, because some of the items that are turned into compost by the facility that processes our Village’s food scraps can’t go into backyard compost. Animal products aren’t recommended in yard compost piles because they attract animals.
How about printing out page 2 of the Village’s food scrap recycling guide, which has a detailed list of what goes and doesn’t go in the compost bin for our Village program? Keep it on your fridge or bulletin board until everyone in the house is in the groove!
Sustainable Sleepy Hollow 