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Help Your Residents Learn About Composting Day

Did you know that May 29th is National Learn About Composting Day? It may be helpful to encourage your residents to recycle their food scraps because it helps to reduce waste in landfills and creates more compost. This blog will cover what composting is, how food scraps in the garbage are a problem, and how you can encourage your residents to compost more.

What Is Composting?

Composting is a natural way to recycle organic waste such as food scraps, manure, grass trimmings and more. Undergoing a natural process, bacteria and fungi then turn organic matter into valuable organic fertilizer for lawns and gardensIt’s estimated that up to 30% of household waste can be diverted from garbage to composting.

Composting Day

Food Scraps in the Garbage is a Problem

Food scraps and organic materials that are placed in the garbage have negative consequences. The EPA estimates that 20% to 30% of food scraps and yard waste are placed in garbage.

In landfills, waste that is buried under garbage doesn’t get much oxygen and food doesn’t decompose. Also, food scraps in garbage can create a greenhouse gas called methane that can contribute to global warming. Plus, food scraps take up limited landfill space that could have been used for other garbage items.

You can encourage your residents and local community to compost more by:

1) Promoting Composting Day on Social Media

You can share short snippets of information and tips with your residents on Facebook and Twitter. The posts can be about what you can and can’t compost for your local area, along with the benefits of organic waste.

Here are some sample social media posts that you can use on your municipal social media pages:

  • Did you know that 20% to 30% of food scraps are placed in the garbage? (Source: EPA) Find out what goes where with #RecycleCoach: https://recyclecoach.com/residents #LearnAboutCompostingDay
  • Composting is an excellent soil conditioner for your lawn and garden. Find out what you can compost with #RecycleCoach: https://recyclecoach.com/residents #LearnAboutCompostingDay
  • Composting Tip: Use an old container with a lid to store food scraps until you’re ready to compost #RecycleCoach #LearnAboutCompostingDay

2) Sending Residents an Email or E-newsletter about Composting Day

You can also share the news about Composting Day on May 29th by including a short note in your municipal email or e-newsletter. Since the average open rate in the U.S. and Canada is 20% for emails. This is a great way to quickly and efficiently communicate with your residents about how to divert food scraps and organics from garbage.

Here are some sample messages to include in your emails for May:

  • Composting Day is on May 29th this year! Teach your family the importance of composting with fun activities like making a compost bin or redecorating your existing compost bin.
  • Learn about Composting Day this year! You can have all the answers you ever wanted about composting and its end uses here. Interested in finding out what you can compost? Check out the #RecycleCoach search tool here.

As your residents and community learn more about composting, they can make more informed decisions about what to place in garbage, recycling or organics. Properly disposing of food scraps and organic waste can make a huge difference for the environment and the planet.


About Recycle Coach:

Recycle Coach is trusted by 3,000+ communities across the U.S., Canada, Australia, and New Zealand to make their local waste and recycling management programs more efficient. Our digital technology platforms extend to web and mobile, along with digital assistants and voice technology.

We educate and encourage residents to become better recyclers, with the goal of inspiring positive and lasting change in communities around the world.