Restaurant Composting

The City of Newburyport's numerous restaurants, stores, and grocers are all cornerstones in the local community. As a vibrant coastal New England city in Massachusetts, the food and services available in Newburyport provide a sense of comfort as well as exciting prospective social outings to residents, employees, officials, and tourists. And in order to make more progress towards the state's 90% reduction in disposal goal by 2050, MassDEP lowered the threshold for the commercial organics ban on November 1, 2022 so that it applies to businesses and institutions generating one-half ton or more of food waste per week. Food waste exceeding this amount is banned from disposal in Massachusetts. 

Your business, your waste hauler, and solid waste facilities are all responsible for complying with waste ban requirements. However, the City will work with businesses effected by this regulation through collaboration by providing valuable resources, education, and outreach. For example, this guide offers suggestions on how to reduce food waste through waste tracking, meal planning, new strategies for food storage and preparation, and more.

You may also find this estimation guide useful in order to estimate the amount of your peak weekly food/organic waste during the year. It is important to document the method you use to estimate the food waste you generate per week in case of human/technical error, for record keeping, or in the event that you seek further guidance.

According to ReFED, each year businesses in the US throw away 25 million tons of food, and spend roughly $57 billion dollars on growing, processing, transporting, and disposing of food that is never consumed. In Massachusetts, food waste is the largest material in our trash. Reducing wasted food can have beneficial impacts on a business’ bottom line, employee and customer satisfaction, and the environment.

Also, several videos demonstrating processes that work to dispose of food waste can be found here. The Johhny’s Luncheonette and Lenox Hotel videos are recommended.

One of the most convenient methods of disposing organic waste is composting. Black Earth is serving several food establishments in Newburyport and they pick up organic waste, converting it to rich composted soil.

You have an opportunity to get on board and help Newburyport become more of a green city. Some restaurants and homeowners in Newburyport have already contracted with Black Earth for compost pick up which has reduced their waste pick up and carbon foot print significantly. 

As we all have been experiencing the impact of climate change, it’s clear that we need to do our part. Composting our food waste is a simple and highly beneficial way to start.  

“Reducing and composting organic waste helps restaurants divert heavy food scraps from regular trash disposal. It transforms those scraps into valuable soil for local farms and gardens. Customers notice when you take real climate action and reduce waste. It's good for the planet-and for your restaurant's brand.”