In a recent article in the New York Times titled “Even Composting Comes with Sticker Shock” author Kim Severson brings to light how simply removing stickers from your food scraps can enhance the environment, possibly even in your own backyard.
Sorting food scraps to make quality compost has a steep learning curve but we’re getting there, one compost bag at a time. Community food scrap collection has been recently implemented in numerous cities across North America and one compost company has begun giving away free bags of compost to patrons that show they have collected stickers from their apples and other fruits. Cards are handed out for the stickers to be placed on and Bingo! We all win, because with less micro plastics and contaminants in food scraps the higher the quality of our final compost product (Severson, 2015).
Community food scrap compost can contain many types of contaminants that are time consuming and just too small to be sifted out. Many gardeners and farmers are hesitant to use compost from municipalities because they often contain plastics and other contaminants. Hundreds of thousand of tons of compost have been abandoned as unusable due to poor food scrap sorting. Cedar Grove compost facility in Washington has said when it comes to stickers they “just can’t sift them out.”
Together, we can reduce waste in landfills and reap the benefits of higher quality compost in our backyard gardens and local farmer’s markets. Public education regarding proper organic waste sorting is key to improving compost quality. Much of the compost used across North America continues to be imported from elsewhere, which has an unnecessarily large environmental footprint. We have the local compost quantity to meet local demand but we will need to work together to enhance our compost quality.
It’s time to peel off your stickers, sometimes the little things can make a big difference.
Frustrated Fruit-Eater
April 12, 2017 — 2:26 pm
Hey No Panic Organics! What do you know about compostable plastic stickers? I’ve heard of them as an alternative to plastic stickers… but will they really reduce contamination in the composting facilities or just create confusion??
Thanks!
Meg McIllfaterick
April 12, 2017 — 2:29 pm
Dear F.F.
Thanks for your question. Once something arrives at the sorting facility, they have no way of knowing if something is a compostable plastic or conventional plastic. Compostable plastic will eventually break down, but it will take much longer than other organic wastes. For this reason, it’s best just to remove all plastics from your organic waste – that goes for products sold as compostable/biodegradable plastic kitchen bin liners, too!
Happy sorting!
Meg
Julie Wilson
April 18, 2017 — 1:08 pm
Dear No Panic Organics/Compost Girl,
I am wondering what is the typical time frame for municipal food scraps to be converted into compost. Is compost that is produced quicker of a different quality than slower forming composts? What drives the timing?
Sincerely,
Your friendly neighbourhood garden geek
Meg McIllfaterick
April 19, 2017 — 1:42 pm
Dear FNGG,
Thanks for your interest in the compost process – the duration of time required to produce compost will vary based on a variety of factors, and will affect the quality of the product. Typically, composting facilities will process municipal food scraps/organic waste for 4-6 months before the final compost product is saleable.
Factors that affect the rate of the composting process include temperature, moisture, oxygen, particle size, C:N of the feedstock and the degree of mixing/turning of compost involved; these factors are affected by the type and proportions of feedstock being received.
The stage in the composting process, or the age of maturity, will affect compost quality. An immature compost can be produced in about 1 month, while a mature compost can take from 6 months to a year. In BC, 3 months are required for the product to be technically considered ‘compost’. Generally, a mature compost is considered of higher quality – all that remains is a complex, organic material with a fine texture, dark colour and earthy smell. Immature compost will continue to breakdown after incorporated into the soil, tying up oxygen and nitrogen, and may temporarily stunt plant growth.
All the best breaking down,
Meg