As sustainability continues to be an important initiative for many colleges and universities, some foodservice operators are expanding their composting efforts, even to the point of offering "compostable" service ware.
How do you turn standard recycling endeavors into a full-fledged composting program? Here are some tips from the University of Washington, which has successfully given composting the green light since 2004.
Set a goal
At the University of Washington, the goal of the composting program is to capture 100
percent of food and beverage waste with accompanying compostable service ware and turn it into compost.
The program includes back-of-house composting at all dining locations, from the smallest espresso bars to the largest restaurants, as well as front-of-house composting, also known as post-consumer collection. All disposable service ware is now 100 percent compostable. In addition, solid waste, recycling and compost collection sites are established at each dining area.
"Our customers have the opportunity to participate in the composting program seven days a week during all hours of operation, helping to make an impact on the environment by reducing the need for landfill space," said Michael Meyering, Housing and Food Services Project Manager at University of Washington.
"By capturing all food and beverage waste, we can take steps in preventing the creation of greenhouse gases from decomposing food and beverage waste at landfills," Meyering said.
The University of Washington's efforts are really paying off, too. From July 2007 through June 2008, the campus community diverted over 500 tons of waste from landfills.
The composting program is helping to conserve fossil fuels, as well. Waste for composting is transported to a facility only 35 miles away as opposed to other waste, which is transferred to a location that's over 250 miles away.
Switch to compostable service ware
The University of Washington provides 100 percent compostable service ware at its dining locations,
which makes the sorting process even easier. "The challenge with all front-of-house compost programs
is the contamination of the compost stream with packaging and containers that are not compostable," Meyering said.
Before the switch to compostable service ware, there was a risk of contaminating the waste for composting. "When we dropped the use of condiments packets, such as mayonnaise and mustard, and instead provided bulk condiment dispensers with compostable soufflé cups, we eliminated a nagging contaminant to our program," Meyering said.
The compostable service ware the university provides includes cutlery, cups, lids, straws, napkins, plates, bowls, containers, wraps and condiment cups. "When customers purchase food and beverages from our food concepts, they can compost the remaining food and beverage waste with the service ware, making it a simple process of utilizing the compost bins as they exit the facility," Meyering said.Get others involved
To ensure that everyone is on board with reducing the amount of waste that is going to a landfill,
the University of Washington has three tips:
- Assign an environmental "champion" with purchasing experience who can work with product distributors to develop a compostable service ware line that can be procured at a competitive price from reliable supply chain sources
- Let your marketing team get the word out
- Give "green" student groups a chance to be a part of the process
Challenges to overcome
To avoid contamination and ensure your composting program's success, Meyering suggests:
- Provide easy to understand signage that customers can comprehend at a glance
- Avoid using packaging that cannot be composted
From a "big picture" perspective, another challenge to overcome is eliminating solid waste packaging. This requires an ongoing collaborative effort with food and beverage packaging providers to create a demand for compostable packaging produced from annual renewable resources.
Marketing your efforts
Communicating your efforts with your campus community, as well as local, regional and national
audiences is a great way to gain support for your composting program and drive the composting agenda.
"Overall, the purpose of our marketing effort is to strive for 100 percent participation from the campus community and to help drive local, regional, national and global waste diversion efforts by providing a large working model for other foodservice operators to learn from," Meyering said.
Here are a few ways to get the word out about your composting efforts:
- Post information at resident halls and in bulletins
- Create articles for campus and staff newsletters
- Conduct interdepartmental presentations
- Display on digital menu boards
- Hang posters at resource recovery areas
- Establish relationships with local, regional and national businesses
- Host tours of your facility
- Send mass emails
- Post information on your website
Other ways to reduce waste
Bulk foods offer another solution to reducing waste. With lower packaging waste than individually
wrapped products, bulk foods are more environmentally friendly and are ideal for dining halls
and self-serve food stations.
RECAP
As one of the most environmentally conscious universities in the country, the University of
Washington is a model to follow when it comes to composting.
- Set a goal and add to your program when the time is right
- Increase your front-of-house efforts with compostable service ware
- Make it a campus-wide initiative by involving other "green" groups
- Avoid contamination by eliminating the use of packaging that cannot be composted
- Look at the bigger picture and involve your suppliers
- Consider low packaging waste foods, such as bulk cereals
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| 1 NPD College Preference Study 2005 ®, TM, ©2009 Kellogg NA Co. |
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