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Cartoon character joyfully tossing a mostly eaten apple into a compost bin.Food scraps recycling drop-off is available at a few locations around Madison.

NEIGHBORHOOD FARMERS' MARKETS:

  • Will return in 2024.  More information coming soon.

 

COMMUNITY GARDEN COMPOSTING SITES

These sites are restricted to just the immediate neighborhoods served by these gardens.

They are volunteer run as well.

If you wish to participate, please contact the garden coordinator.

Click the garden name for more details

  • Prairie Hills Neighborhood Community Garden

 

Other options...

Try backyard composting options.

Be sure to check out our how-to guide, which you can pick up from your local Madison Public Library branch.

You can also contact a private vendor to possibly set up collection service.

 

think prevention

Reducing the waste you make is always the best choice.

Use the resources on our other food scraps pages to help plan your meals, store & use what you buy, and to create new opportunities with leftovers.

 

 

community garden composting locations

Prairie Hills Community Garden at Lucy Lincoln Hiestand Park

This is a picture of the community composting site for the Praire Hills community

backyard composting

Check out our page about how to start composting the food scraps in your back yard.

 

 

private COMPOSTING OPTIONS

If you are interested in composting your food scraps and the drop-off sites just won't work for your needs, these composters may be able to offer the service to you for a collection fee:

  • Earth Stew: 608-213-6990
  • Curbside Composter: 608-338-4798
  • Green Box Compost: compost@withgreenbox.com

Commercial entities may also want to consider inquiring with Sanimax or your private waste hauler to see if they can offer food scraps services. Organix Recycling may also be able to provide some collection services.

The drop-off sites are for residents. They can't support the volume generated by restaurants, food manufacturers, and other businesses.  Commercial entities are also encouraged to contact the company that presently hauls their refuse and recycling to see if a food scraps program is an available service.

 

will citywide food scraps recycling ever happen?

Yes.

We've learned a lot of lessons over the past 10 years of trying to make food scraps recycling work in Madison. We haven't solved it yet, but we will keep trying. 

One promising development that could get us closer to providing food scraps recycling for the city is the Sustainability Campus proposed by the Dane County Department of Waste and Renewables.  You can read more about that project here.

 

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