Durable silverware/plates vs. compostables/biodegradables in the cafeteria
Durables vs compostables/biodegradables in the cafeteria.
Currently my campus at Portland Community College does not compost. We do have compostable plates and silverware. I am researching schools that use durables successfuly, and schools that don't in an attempt to see if it's worth trying to get the school to move toward durables ( if we are not composting, then the compostables plates end up in the waste stream)
Any feedback to this topic would be greatly appreciated
Hey Traci,
I'd recommend a two-part story that ran in the July and September issues of Biocycle if you haven't already seen it. The two-part story was on the sustainability of compostable products. Starting in their July 2009 issue "Compostable Products Go mainstream" followed by a September 2009 article "What's in a Resin? Sustainability of Compostable Products".
What was really neat about these articles was they investigated a number of factors that should be considered when investigating the use of compostables including the sources of the raw materials being used, the energy consumed during manufacturing, and if the products are actually being captured for composting. They looked at the companies that produce the raw materials for the products and provided some case studies.
Is there a reason your campus is not composting currently? I see that the PCC Rock Creek Campus is doing vermicomposting. Compostable products in the food industry seem to make sense when they are helping to divert food waste to be composted. We have an AASHE resource list of campus composting websites in case it is of interest too - http://www.aashe.org/resources/campus-composting-programs.php
A few factors to take into account in thinking about switching to reusable's would be the infrastructure that would need to be built (could be expensive up frontcosts) for washers, conveyor belts, etc. There may be additional staff capacity that would be needed as well, and of course water usage and energy to heat the water. This article from our friends at NACUBO may also be of help, "Compostable or Reusable" .
Does anyone know of brand of compostable utensils that compost at 190-200 degrees? For the compost site that we use, that is the temperature range they normally use for their compost. Most of the compostable utensils I have seen don't compost until 240-270 degrees.
Chris
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Durables vs compostables/biodegradables in the cafeteria.
Currently my campus at Portland Community College does not compost. We do have compostable plates and silverware. I am researching schools that use durables successfuly, and schools that don't in an attempt to see if it's worth trying to get the school to move toward durables ( if we are not composting, then the compostables plates end up in the waste stream)
Any feedback to this topic would be greatly appreciated
Traci, at this time I do not have an exact answer for you but starting late-Jaunary 2010 we will be working with Altanta Christian Schools with our product. They will be converting from durables to compostables completely (straws, plates, cutlery, etc...). So their food waste & these compostable items will be able to go in our Orca Machines. The only item they will have to discard is the milk carton since its polycoated (there are alternatives here but costly). This case study I think will benefit everyone wanting to convert as you discribed above and am anxious to share the results. Stay tuned and please note our website & my personal email...
In the meantime you can see a video on our site showing the food & compostables in the Orca Machine. The plastic bottles you see are made of PLA and the plates are Begasse.
Thanks!
Ryan Casey
ryan@orcagreen.net
www.orcagreen.net