Dive Brief:
- On May 8, a new food waste plant opened in Amboy, New York. The operation is now the largest composting facility in the state.
- The Onondaga County Recovery Agency operates the facility, which accepts commercial and institutional food waste from haulers, according to WAER.
- The plant is capable of processing 9,600 tons of food waste annually, and when converted, the organics can create around 36,000 cubic yards of compost, as reported by WAER.
Dive Insight:
OCRRA told WAER that instead of sending it to a landfill, diverting food waste could save about $44 per ton, which can lead to substantial savings. The site's operator, Tom Ferguson, told WAER that he hopes this facility can eventually offer training courses to compost site operators looking to expand their services.
As more communities establish organic curbside collections and states propose or pass food waste bans, expect to see a larger number of food composting facilities opening. Food waste accounts for approximately 25% of the waste stream and the cost of landfilling is expensive. Processing organics at a facility is generally more economical than landfilling the waste and better from an environmental standpoint.