Food waste is a massive problem. In the U.S., we throw away about 30–40% of our food every year—that’s around 80 billion pounds, which adds up to over $218 billion wasted each year. Around the world, it’s even worse, with about 2,800 billion pounds of food wasted each year. That is only the beginning of the food waste problem.

When food ends up in landfills, it breaks down anaerobically and creates methane. Methane is a potent gas that speeds up climate change. In fact, it is more than 28 times as potent as carbon dioxide at trapping heat in the atmosphere.

Additionally, the land, water, and energy used to grow that food that ends in a landfill are also wasted.

Composting is a better option. While it doesn’t eliminate food waste, it turns food scraps into healthy organic soil additives while cutting down methane gas emissions. The compost then helps farmers use less synthetic fertilizer while improving soil quality and water retention thus making the whole food cycle more sustainable.

Composting at home is not as easy as it sounds. That’s where we come in at CompostRx with residential food scrap pickup and then delivery of the finished compost each spring.