Dive Brief:
- A pilot food waste program is underway in Sherborn, MA.
- According to Carol Rubenstein, the Recycling Committee’s chairwoman, the town could potentially shrink its total tons of waste by as much as 25%.
- The town is asking residents to separate organic waste from the rest of the household trash.
Dive Insight:
Sherborn contracted with a company to collect the bins, which will be transported to a transfer station. The process is expected to cost less than the fees associated with incinerating the waste materials. The cost of 50 food bins is expected to be reimbursed by the Environmental Protection Agency, (EPA)
According to the EPA, 25% of the waste generated in U.S. households is food waste. The agency also notes that a typical American wastes an estimated 231 pounds of food annually.
The state of Massachusetts recently enacted a commercial food ban. The ban requires any business or institution that generates one or more tons of organic waste per week, to dispose of it using pre-approved methods such as donation or repurposing the materials instead of tossing it into the trash. The ban will begin on October 1, 2014 and is expected to impact 1,700 businesses.