• Curbside yard debris & veggies recycling
  
• Home composting
  
• Commercial veggie scrap composting
  
• Municipal composting

Commercial veggie scrap composting

According to the 2007 Sonoma County Waste Characterization Study, about 27% of commercial garbage is food waste totaling about 39,635 tons per year.

Vegetable food scraps that can't be donated, such as spoiled fruits and vegetables, stale bakery items and kitchen prep trimmings, can be composted into a beneficial soil amendment, thus greatly reducing the amount of material going into landfill. Restaurants, grocery stores, schools, hospitals and other facilities can benefit by participating in garbage company pick up, by directly hauling material to the municipal composting program or by composting food scraps on-site. Not only is food composting a better use of organic resources than landfilling, it can also decrease refuse collection costs over the long term.

1. Garbage company pick up of commercial veggie food waste
Does your company put vegetable food scraps in the garbage? Ask your garbage company if your business qualifies to be included on a dedicated commercial pick up route. For customers served by The Ratto Group/North Bay Corporation, contact (707) 495-0864 or (707) 217-7160 for information and details about starting service. For an example, see a short video about the commercial food scrap composting pilot in the city of Sonoma.

2. On-site commercial food scrap composting
Depending on the type and volume of food scraps, small operations may be exempt from the permitting requirements (i.e., currently those with less than 500 cubic yards of certain types of food scraps). Prior to beginning a compost operation, consult the current composting regulations and contact your local enforcement agency for guidance on any local permit requirements.

3. Municipal veggie food scrap composting
Sonoma Compost Company, under contract with the Sonoma County Waste Management Agency, operates the municipal composting program. By appointment only, self-hauled commercial vegetable food scraps are accepted for composting.