The City of Lansing is asking metro Lansing restaurants and food processors to partner with them in reducing food waste by participating in Live Green Lansing’s Scraps to Soil pilot program. The goal of this initiative is to educate the community on using food scraps as a resource rather than a waste product, and to encourage businesses and residents to keep food waste out of the landfill or wastewater by composting.
Live Green Lansing is a one-stop resource for residents, businesses and visitors to learn, communicate and get involved in Lansing’s environmental programs and activities. One of its new green initiatives, Scraps to Soil, is made possible through a grant from the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality and support from Capital Area Recycling and Trash (CART).
The City of Lansing has partnered with Hammond Farms and the Delta Institute on a pilot program where participating businesses will have their food scraps collected by Hammond Farms who will compost it and turn it into high quality soil that will be donated to local community gardens. Since the pilot launched in September, 128 cubic yards of food scraps have been collected. This will contribute to the generation of about 213 cubic yards of finished compost. Beyond the pilot, businesses will be encouraged to sign up for food collection services.
“Whether you’re frequenting your favorite restaurant or working in your child’s school cafeteria, you can feel good knowing that supporting participating businesses contributes to food scraps becoming a resource rather than a waste product,” said City of Lansing Mayor Virg Bernero. “By doing our part, we will ensure that Lansing remains a healthy, thriving place to live for generations to come.
The City of Lansing is asking businesses that generate food scraps of any kind, to get involved in food composting. Here are some of the businesses that are currently participating in Scraps to Soil:
• Allen Neighborhood Center
• Biggby #270
• Blue Owl Coffee
• The Cosmos
• Zoobie’s Old Town Tavern
• Lansing Fire Station #1
• Juice Nation
• Lansing Brewing Company
• Lansing Catholic High School
• Midtown Brewing Company
• Soup Spoon
• Sparrow Hospital
Businesses interested in participating in the Scraps to Soil pilot program can contact Natalie Molnar at livegreen@lansingmi.gov or (517) 702-6597.
Live Green Lansing partners with a variety of organizations to help individuals and businesses get involved in helping Lansing become a healthier, greener community. If you are hosting a green event, add it to Live Green Lansing’s online calendar! If you would like to get involved, visit the website at livegreenlansing.org and browse upcoming events to find one you’d like to participate in.
For more information about Live Green Lansing and how you can ‘live green’ in your community, visit livegreenlansing.org.
About Live Green Lansing: Lansing is a great place to live, work and play, and one way that the city is working to make Lansing an even greater place is through the Live Green Lansing Initiative. Live Green Lansing aims to highlight the city’s growing environmental ethic and raise awareness for the environmental issues faced by the community. Live Green Lansing is a one-stop resource for the community to learn, communicate and get involved in Lansing’s environmental programs. Visit livegreenlansing.org for more information.
