Charlotte: A Land of Opportunities

A proactive city, Charlotte stands strong as a sustainability leader, especially in waste reduction. As Mecklenburg County Government (MCG) environmental manager, waste reduction, Laurette Hall is at the helm of Charlotte recycling successes; Laurette is a visionary who quietly, effectively implements her recycling plan for the county while forging lasting relationships.

CMS food waste collection for
compost effective system

The City of Charlotte is within Mecklenburg County; the city and county work closely together on community services, including materials management. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools (CMS) - 164 schools and 145,000 enrolled students - is a prime example of the city and county working in unison for citizen benefit.

Dating back to 2011, Elemental Impact developed strong Charlotte relationships. Jake Wilson, MCG senior environmental manager, was named the February 2011 IMPACTOR of the month and honored in The IMPACT Blog article, A Man of Controversy, A Man of Action.

Concord Mills, a Simon mall in metro Charlotte, serves as the Sustainable Food Court Initiative (SFCI) Shopping Mall Pilot and was the catalyst for Elemental Impact's work in the Charlotte area. Ei Partner HMSHost, Concord Mills food court concessionaire and the Charlotte Douglas International Airport foodservice operator, was integral to Ei's solid sustainability foundation in Charlotte.

one of the first CM donation collections
photo courtesy of HMSHost

Beginning in 2011, the SFCI Team worked closely with HMSHost and Simon on creating back-of-the-house (BOH) food waste collection for compost, food donation and plastic film recycling programs at Concord Mills. The ZWA Blog article, ACTION: Theme for the SFCI Shopping Mall Pilot, is an overview of the programs.

When Charlotte hosted the 2012 Democratic National Convention, the city | county used the convention as an opportunity to expand existing recycling practices for the metro area. Facilities such as the Charlotte Convention Center (CCC) and the Carolina Panthers Stadium implemented food waste collection for compost as the city prepared for the convention. BOH food waste collection is now standard operating practice at the facilities.

In partnership with Charlotte-based ReCommunity Recycling, festive, well-designed recycling containers were strategically placed throughout the downtown corridor. Keeping with recycling best practices, each bin is paired with a trash container. ReCommunity operates the county-owned MRF - materials recovery facility for single-stream recycling.

Charlotte successes were highlighted at the 2012 Charlotte Ei Partner Tours hosted by Simon | HMSHost. Laurette and Jake attended the first day of presentations and tours of Concord Mills' impressive recycling programs. The IMPACT Blog article, Charlotte Ei Partner Tours, is a tours overview.

downtown recycling bin

In fall 2013 the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Region 4 funded a Scaling Up Composting in Charlotte, NC Grant to GreenBlue's Sustainable Packaging Coalition (SPC). To maximize its impact, the grant was extended for an additional year along with funding. Ei is a grant sub-grantee. The ZWA Blog article, Scaling up Composting in Charlotte, NC, details the grant goal, objectives and tasks along with listing partners | sub-grantees.

"Scaling Up" was used in the grant name as Charlotte has a solid food waste composting program compliments of Earth Farms, a state-permitted facility. The grant intends to serve as a catalyst to increase food waste collection for compost throughout the metro Charlotte area. The Ei FB album, Ei Partner Tours - Day 2, recounts an Earth Farms tour.

Earth Week 2014 marked the first official EPA Grant Team visit to the Queen City for three action-packed days. With a plethora of back-to-back meetings and tours scheduled, the team recruited participants for the EPA Grant program. The ZWA Blog article, Charlotte Focuses on Food Waste with EPA Support, is an overview of the monumental visit.

Knights Stadium

The Ei Team returned to Charlotte in July and overlapped the grant with Ei initiatives. From Ei's perspective, the trip was exploratory in nature to determine if the tremendous Ei | Charlotte | MCG synergies warranted investment in formal programs, partnerships and | or other initiatives. The Charlotte Knights hosted a meeting at their stadium to introduce Ei initiatives and the EPA Grant.

During the visit, SMAT - Sustainable Materials ACTION Team - was formed to support the Grant and other Ei work. The ZWA Blog article, Ei Charlotte Visit: Busy, Productive & Fun!, is a recap of the powerful visit.

Validating the strong Ei | MCG relationship, Laurette attended the November 2014 Annual Ei Partner Meeting in Atlanta. Laurette presented on the extensive synergies & potentials and learned about Ei initiatives beyond Charlotte and materials management. The IMPACT Blog article, Ei 2014: A Year of Evolution, gives an overview of the meeting along with the history of events that built the substantial foundation in-place.

The Grant | Ei Team converged on Charlotte the week of February 2 for a series of meetings and tours at the major sports facilities, the convention center and local schools. SPC senior manager Anne Bedarf was supported in meetings with SMAT members: Sarah Martell of Innovia Films, Rick Lombardo of NaturBag, Tim Goodman of NatureWorks, and Sarah Martinez of Eco-Products.

Laurette, Eric & Kim after the
City of Charlotte meeting

For the February 2015 Charlotte visit, Ei founder Holly Elmore and Kim Charick of the EPA arrived a day early for Water Use | Toxicity and other Ei-specific meetings. Rob Phocas, City of Charlotte energy & sustainability manager, was first on the meeting itinerary. Though focused on Airborne Kitchen Grease, a proactive approach to a costly cooking by-product, the meeting was a perfect opportunity to update Rob on the EPA Grant status.

JR Stewart of Filtrexx treated Ei to a lovely lunch at McCormick & Schmick's downtown location to educate on the Garden Soxx, perfect for community & school gardens. With the strong food waste collection for composting at CMS, the Garden Soxx may prove useful as an educational tool to directly connect food waste to compost to garden produce.

A lovely dinner at Rooster's downtown location hosted by Eric & Betsy Dyer, local Grease Lock Filter distributors, was a perfect segue into the EPA Grant meetings the following morning.

The Knights were first on the meeting itinerary as a follow-up to the July meeting and subsequent conference calls. After an overview session including General Manager Erik Hassy and Executive Chef Joseph Marx of Ovations, the stadiums foodservice operator, Stadium Director of Operations Mark McKinnon led the group on a BOH tour to better understand the physical parameters for recycling logistics. Grant partners Sandra Clinton of UNC Charlotte and Jim Lanier with Earth Farms joined the Knights meeting. As the food waste hauler | destination, Jim attended most of the meetings.

Knights meeting group photo

The loading dock included ample space for food waste collection and source-separation of high value recyclable material. It was an inspiring visit and rewarding to witness the zero waste "team spirit" evident between stadium facilities and foodservice operations. With plenty of action points documented, the group said farewell to new friends.

Next on the day's itinerary was an introductory meeting with the CCC. As mentioned above, the CCC is a veteran to BOH food waste collection for composting and eager to take their program to next dimensions. CCC Food Services Operations Manager Steve Gorham hosted the meeting with CCC Assistant Director of Facility Services Roger Rochelle and Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority (CRVA) Procurement Manager Jeff Doerr attending.

CCC meeting

A primary discussion point was the role legal provisions play in zero waste success, whether with foodservice subcontractors or waste | recycling haulers. The ZWA Blog article, Contract provisions require team work necessary for zero waste success, documents the important role contract provisions play in creating an effective stage for food waste collection and source-separated material recycling.

Continuing with the common theme of saying farewell to new friends, the group collected business cards with promises of follow-up within an array of action points and information requested.

The final meeting of the day was at the Metrolina Regional Scholars Academy, a NC charter school for the highly gifted scholar. Without a formal lunch program, the academy has unique challenges | opportunities not experienced by CMS-operated schools. With strong parental involvement, the school may excel in amazing recycling efforts with parent | student consciousness shifts.

Common within Ei travels, dinners serve as a relaxed venue to recap the powerful activities along with strategies on how to maximize potentials. The King's Kitchen was the perfect venue for dinner: 100% of proceeds are donated to the homeless and competent staff are those often considered "unemployable."

The final day began with a productive meeting and tour of the Charlotte Hornets Arena hosted by Andrew Chisholm, manager of arena & event services. With Mike Wann, Levy Restaurants (Levy) assistant director of operations,and Bill Becker, CRVA arena director of support services, in attendance, the necessary trilogy - stadium management, facilities management and foodservice operations - were present at the meeting.

After introductions and grant overview, the group toured the stadium front and BOH operations. It was exciting to witness the potential for refining the arena's current recycling practices, especially food waste collection for compost. Levy is the foodservice operator for Ei Supporter Georgia World Congress Center Authority, a founding Zero Waste Zones participant. A Levy manager recently transferred from the Georgia Dome to the arena; the Dome is the SFCI Event Venue Pilot with solid food waste donation and collection for compost practices.

Added bonus: a standard size baler is located near the waste | recycling loading dock area. It is nice to know equipment is in-place to source-separate cardboard, aluminum and other valuable material.

Kim w/ compost garden sign

During lunch, the team visited the Chantilly Montessori School as an example of the CMS impressive food waste collection for compost program. It was rewarding to witness the four and five year old children learn to sort their food and pour liquid from the beverage carton prior to recycling.The committed staff is integral to the school's success.

In addition, the school has a compost area complete with a tumbler, rain barrel collection, and raised bed gardens. Per the wooden sign, the NO to grass & weeds shows the school is careful to prevent weed seeds & pesticides | herbicides from contaminating the compost. The YES includes leaves, fruits & vegetables. 

The final EPA Grant Team meeting was with the Carolina Panthers hosted by Scott Paul, director of stadium operations, and attended by Delaware North Executive Chef John Morey and Operations Manager Jeff Kelly. In addition to an established BOH food waste collection program, the Panthers have solid recycling practices where cardboard is baled on-site. Over the past season, the Panthers recycled a total of 76.63 tons of materials, including 25.56 tons of source-separated aluminum. The food waste program diverted an additional 6.65 tons of material from the landfill. IMPRESSIVE!

Panther game-day tailgate recycling
photo courtesy of Jake

Jake oversees the Panther tailgate recycling program, a collaboration of many organizations | individuals: volunteers, City of Charlotte Solid Waste for game day collection, the Parking Lot Consortium for engaging the lot attendants, City Center Partners for their stewardship and media outreach, Bojangles sponsorship of bags & award gift cards, and ESPN 730 for sponsorship and support. The 2012 ZWA Blog article, Winning Panthers Recycling Season, recaps the collaboration necessary for a successful tailgate recycling program.

The 2014 | 2015 season broke records with 45.35 tons recycled at the home games, a 23% increase over last season's 36.76 tons recycled. Ditto on IMPRESSIVE!

At the Panthers' meeting, the focus was on Recycling Refinement, moving beyond landfill diversion, and how the Grant Team and SMAT may assist the stadium edge closer to zero waste. Front-of-the-house food waste collection, with first steps in the suites, was the meeting focal point. An action item is scheduling a call with industry leaders experienced in bringing a stadium to zero waste.

downtown Charlotte statue

SUCCESS: the Knights, Hornets, Panthers and the CCC gave a thumbs up on joining the grant program.  Anne will follow-up over the next weeks to complete the paperwork and discuss next steps. For a list of current Grant participants and to join the program, visit the SPC Scaling Up Composting in Charlotte website page.

The Ei Team intends to return to Charlotte midsummer for follow-up meetings on the city-wide Source-Separated Materials Recycling Template (S-SMRT). Atlanta serves as the pilot city and Charlotte is a potential template replication pilot city. The ZWA Blog article, Total Materials Management Approach, gives an update on the pilot and explains the approach.

As the S-SRMT took a side seat in the February meetings, the Grant will take the side seat in the summer meetings. The S-SRMT is an avenue for Ei to continue support to Grant participants beyond its expiration date.

The Ei FB album, Charlotte Visit: EPA Grant & Beyond, is a pictorial recap of the excellent visit.

After a team wrap-up, the group dispersed excited to segue the powerful discussions into action. Laurette summarized the scenario with perfection: Charlotte is a Land of Opportunities!

Food Waste Recovery: build it and they will come?? ...

In August 2012, the National Resources Defense Council released an Issue Paper, Wasted: How America is Losing Up to 40% of Its Food from Farm to Fork to Landfill, researched and written by Dana Gunders. The paper served as a wake-up call to reassess the nation's food waste practices from the following standpoints: redirection of edible food to a hungry population, purchasing practices causing waste and food waste destinations.

According to the EPA Reducing Wasted Food Basics page:

More than 96 percent of the food we throw away ends up in landfills. In 2011, we landfilled more than 36 million tons of food waste. 

Beyond the methane gas produced by food in landfills (20%+ more potent than carbon generated from car emissions and other sources), a high percentage of the 36 million tons of food waste is nutritious, edible food. Note the 36 million tons is food waste generated in commercial operations (food production, grocery stores, healthcare and the hospitality | entertainment industry including dining establishments) and personal consumer | residential food purchases.

Until recently the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Food Recovery Hierarchy was the standard for preferred food waste destination options.

As organizations like the Institute for Local Self-Reliance (ILSR) address how to redirect food waste from landfills to productive uses, the EPA Food Recovery Hierarchy is reviewed for local application. In 2014, the ILSR published an updated Hierarchy for Reducing & Recycling Food Scraps and Other Organic Discards:

The ILSR hierarchy includes the following updates to the EPA version:

1. Title is expanded as follows: reducing replaces recovery and recycling & scraps are added along with other organic discards.
2. EPA second tier Feed Hungry People renamed Edible Food Rescue.
3. EPA third tier Feed Animals is eliminated.
4. ILSR third tier is Residential Backyard Composting.
5. EPA fourth tier Industrial Uses is moved to one level above bottom tier Landfill & Incineration and renamed Mechanical Biological Mixed Waste Treatment; anaerobic digestion is included in ILSR fifth tier. 
6. ILSR expanded Composting to a higher level into two categories: Small-scale Decentralized Composting and Centralized Composting or Anaerobic Digestion.
7. Bottom tier Landfill & Incineration remained consistent.

Brenda presenting at the
F&B Pkging Mtg

In her presentation at the Fourth Annual Food & Beverage Sustainable Packaging Meeting hosted by Elemental Impact at Global Green's Washington D.C. offices, ILSR Co-Director Brenda Platt included the updated hierarchy in her presentation. Additionally, Brenda announced the publication of two important industry resources: 

• State of Composting in the US; What, Why, Where & How published in April 2014 with contributions from Biocycle, Coker Composting Consulting and University of Washington. Funded by the 11th Hour Project, the 131-page report reviews composting basics, provides national and state-by-state statistics and job generation data, summarizes model programs, technologies and systems, and concludes with recommendations on how to grow composting in the U.S.
• Growing Local Fertility: A Guide to Community Composting published in July 2014 in collaboration with the Highlands Center for Composting in Hardwick, Vermont the report profiles 31 model programs in 14 states and the District of Columbia.

Brenda emphasized the important role grass roots composting systems play in food waste recovery. Working with the Washington D.C. Department of Parks & Recreation, the ILSR and ECO City Farms offer the Neighborhood Soil Rebuilders training program, a community composter train-the-trainer program with a community service component. 

Over 1,000 New York City citizens completed the Master Composting Program. According to Brenda, these Master Composters serve as community activists who encourage fellow residents to embark on neighborhood composting solutions for food waste and rebuilding the soil. Grass roots efforts, grounded in neighborhood activism, create the culture where public policy, supported by community leaders and private enterprise, may segue to macro solutions for food waste.

The ZWA Blog article, Sustainable F&G Packaging: moving from an emerging to a maturing industry, is an overview of the meeting with a recap of the powerful presentations.

Bringing the focus local is critical to food waste recovery and food security for the nation's under-served populations. With capacity challenges for commercial food waste composting destinations, community garden and other local options may fill the gap while government officials and private enterprise wrestle with regulations, permits and at-times public resistance to state-permitted regional composting or anaerobic digestion facilities.

The ILSR updated food recovery hierarchy aligns with the necessary local participation to reduce the 40% of the food produced wasted and 96% of food waste destined for landfill.

Is a grass roots food waste revolution underway? What is the role of social enterprise in creating viable solutions for the entire population, including those currently under-served? 

Green Streets - a grass roots recycling social enterprise grounded in San Francisco - recently visited Atlanta for Citizen Film's Green Streets documentary screenings, community discussions and meetings. The ZWA Blog article, Green Streets, grass roots social enterprise, is a recap of the powerful Atlanta visit.

Green Streets empowers by creating jobs, cleaning-up housing projects and bringing dignity to an imprisoned population. Can the master composter training program teamed with community garden development augment the Green Streets template?

So many questions, so much potential, yet who is willing to step to the plate with necessary resources, community support and wisdom to guide the creation of an effective food waste recovery template? Do we have a "Field of Dreams?" the foundation is built ... build it and they will come ...

Sustainable F&B Packaging: moving from an emerging to a maturing industry

On December 11 industry leaders converged on Global Green's Washington D.C. office for the Fourth Annual Sustainable Food & Beverage (F&B) Packaging Value Chain Meeting. The one-day meeting addresses the challenges | obstacles to sustainable F&B packaging.

Ei Chair Scott Seydel with
Paul Walker of Global Green

Elemental Impact (Ei) orchestrates the powerful annual meeting. Invites are extended to the trade association and non-profit executives who operate within the F&B packaging value chain. 

A BIG THANK YOU to Global Green for hosting the meeting in their shared office space. It was an honor Paul Walker who heads the D.C. office was in town and joined the meeting.

Each year the meeting discussions exemplify the shifts and growth in an evolving industry. The ZWA Blog article, Tackling the Challenges | Barriers to Sustainable Packaging, is an overview of the 2013 meeting while Second Annual F&B Packaging Meeting, recaps the 2012 meeting. For a synopsis of the inaugural 2011 meeting, visit the ZWA Blog article, Sustainable Foodservice Packaging Meeting.

Anchoring the value chain organizations are the following participating trade associations:

Scott during welcoming remarks

• Foodservice Packaging Institute (FPI) - represents single-use F&B packaging manufacturers.
• National Restaurant Association (NRA) - represents the F&B packaging purchaser who holds the power of consumer demand to effect change; foodservice operators bear the increased costs often inherent within shifting to sustainable packaging.
• U.S.Composting Council | American BioGas Council (USCC | ABC) - represent final destination options for post-consumer food waste and compostable packaging.

Numerous non-profits who work in arenas impacting food & beverage packaging attended the meeting:

• Biodegradable Products Institute (BPI)
• DC Environmental Network (DCEN)
• Elemental Impact | Sustainable Food Court Initiative (Ei | SFCI)
• GreenBlue Institute | Sustainable Packaging Coalition (GB | SPC)
• Green Seal (GS)
• Global Green | Coalition for Resource Recovery (GG | CoRR)
• Institute for Local Self-Reliance (ILSR)
• Sustainable Biomaterial Collaborative (SBC)

Many meeting participants joined Ei Chair Scott Seydel for a pre-meeting dinner at GS certified Beacon Bar & Grill. Great food and lively, fun dinner conversation set the stage for the powerful meeting the following day.

In the morning, each organization presented on their mission, stakeholders, 2014 activities and finished with planned 2015 projects. The meeting agenda, PPT presentations and attendee list are available for download on the Ei Meetings & Events page. 

It was intriguing to witness the accomplishments over the past year. The 2013 morning presentations were summarized as follows:

Lack of consistency and confusion within the value chain was a consistent challenge interwoven within presentations. To create common ground several organizations are in various development stages for packaging standards, tool kits and other educational mediums. These documents are designed to assist the entire value chain - from manufacturers to foodservice operators to recycling and composting facilities - with decision making that aligns with emerging best sustainable packaging practices. 

During the morning presentation, 2014 accomplishments included a plethora of action taken or in-process relating to tool kits and educational platforms:

Foodservice Packaging Institute

Lynn Dyer with FPI presenting

• Foodservice Packaging Recovery Toolkit - organized by sectors: communities, MRF (material recovery facilities) and end markets; includes an interactive map of end markets and case studies of successful foodservice packaging recovery.
• Foam Recycling Coalition - formed in 2014 to establish and fund proactive, multi-year grant programs geared to drive foam recovery & generate success stories; call for grant applications in early 2015 with grant announcements slated for spring 2015. 
• Recycling & Composting Toolkit for foodservice operators slated for 2015 in partnership with the NRA.
• Paper Recovery Alliance | Plastics Recovery Group formed in late 2011 continue as the working groups behind FPI tool kit development, educational webinars and industry alliances for joint projects.

GreenBlue's Sustainable Packaging Coalition

• SPC Foodservice Packaging Industry Leadership Committee, launched in 2013, is working on a Design Guide that connects design with recovery. A supporting workshop is scheduled at SUSTPACK 2015.
• How2Recycle (H2R): Clear. Consistent. Concise, recycling labels that make sense - a voluntary, standardized labeling system that clearly communicates recycling instructions to the public; collaborating with BPI on incorporating composting into H2R label; consumer testing RFP (request for proposal) slated for release: McDonald's, Kellogg's, Wegmans & Honest Tea use the H2R labels on consumer packaging.

Brie Welzer with Green Seal
presenting

Green Seal

• Restaurant & Food Service Standard (GS-55) -  requirements address the significant impacts of food services: sustainably-sourced food (options are local and environmentally preferable), waste minimization, use of environmentally-preferable products, and conservation of energy and water. Launched in 2014 with 10 restaurants certified. 2015 Goal: become more visible & increase publicity on certified restaurants.
• Food Service Packaging Standard (GS-35) - establishes environmental requirements for food-service food packaging, which includes single-use containers for packaging or carry-out of products from restaurants and other retail food service establishments.
• Greening Food & Beverage Services - a Green Seal Guide to Transforming the Industry; published in 2011 and continues as a valuable industry tool.

Institute for Local Self-Reliance

Brenda Platt with ILSR
presenting

• State of Composting in the US; What, Why, Where & How published in April 2014 with contributions from Biocycle, Coker Composting & Consulting and University of Washington. Funded by the 11th Hour Project, the 131-page report reviews composting basics, provides national and state-by-state statistics and job generation data, summarizes model programs, technologies and systems, and concludes with recommendations on how to grow composting in the U.S.
• Growing Local Fertility: A Guide to Community Composting published in July 2014 in collaboration with the Highfields Center for Composting in Hardwick, Vermont the report profiles 31 model programs in 14 states and the District of Columbia.

National Restaurant Association

• NRA Sustainability Report, Shedding Light on Sustainability, the NRA's first-ever sustainability report focuses on environmentally-stable trends and initiatives within the restaurant industry. The report presents the industry’s efforts to reduce waste and conserve resources through practices including composting, recycling, energy and water efficiency, and food donations. A second report is slated for February 2015 publication.
• Recycling & Composting Toolkit for foodservice operators slated for 2015 in partnership with the FPI.
• Composting & Food Donation Toolkit slated for 2015.
• Restaurant Litter Reduction Project with FPI & Keep America Beautiful underway.

Sustainable Biomaterial Collaborative

• Guidelines for Sustainable Bioplastics provide a road map for the development and continuing improvement of biobased plastics throughout their lifecycle; The Guidelines reflect the current collective wisdom of a wide range of organizations who address the potential benefits and challenges of biobased plastics.
• BioSpecs for Foodservice Ware, Environmentally Preferable Specifications for Compostable Biobased Food Service Ware, define the criteria for manufacturers to determine the sustainability of their compostable foodservice ware; includes a sample bid document that purchasers may use when going to bid for compostable foodservice ware.

The preceeding list exhibits the significant industry strides in developing consistent packaging standards, clear labeling, and resources to diffuse confusion when shifting food & beverage packaging to sustainable options.

Cary Oshins with USCC

The Composting Council Research and Education Foundation (CCREF) - the philantropic arm of the USCC - is a catalyst for advancement of composting technologies, practices, and beneficial uses that support resource conservation and economic and environmental sustainability. Within their mission, the CCREF positively impacts communities locally and globally by:

• Fostering scientific research opportunities
• Increasing awareness and educating the public
• Advancing the stature and practices of the composting industry

In her presentation, ILSR co-director Brenda Platt emphasized the important role grass roots composting systems play in food waste recovery. Working with the Washington D.C. Department of Parks & Recreation, the ILSR and ECO City Farms offer the Neighborhood Soil Rebuilders training program, a community composter train-the-trainer program with a community service component.

Over 1,000 New York City citzens completed the Master Composting Program. According to Brenda, these Master Composters serve as community activists encouraging fellow residents to embark on neighborhood composting solutions for food waste and rebuilding the soil. Grass roots efforts, grounded in neighborhood activism, create the culture where public policy, supported by community leaders and private enterprise, may segue to macro solutions for food waste.

Anne Bedarf & Matt de la Houssaye
during the afternoon break

In her presentation, Anne Bedarf with the SPC gave an update on the EPA Grant Scaling Up Composting in Charlotte, NC. The ZWA Blog article, Scaling up composting in Charlotte, details the grant goal, objectives, tasks and team members. Ei is honored to serve as subgrantee on the grant.

Anne outlined three grant outcomes:

1. Improve Waste Diversion & Infrastructure
2. Food & Packaging Waste Characterization
3. Lessons Learned & Transferability Report

An early lesson learned is packaging is a second step in food waste diversion programs. Grant program participants include Central Piedmont Community College, Carolina Place, IKEA and the YMCA.  

Ei founder Holly Elmore updated on the SFCI - Atlanta Airport implementation of the compostable packaging provision in the recent concessionaire contracts. The ZWA Blog article, Atlanta Airport's Leadership Role in Compostable Food & Beverage Packaging, includes a history of the contract provision along with an overview of the October SFCI Vendor Fair.

Scott using a "recyclable"
tripod to record presentations

On the West Coast, CoRR brings food scrap recovery systems to multi-family buildings in the San Francisco Bay Area, and beyond. When tenants were presented with the bin and bag kits, nearly all showed a strong desire to participate in the program. Education on use of the compost end product is incorporated into the pilot. Piloting Food Scrap Composting in San Francisco Bay Area Apartment Buildings is an excellent short video of the in-progress pilots. 

During the labeling discussion, BPI executive director Steve Mojo mentioned a prominent compostable packaging manufacturerer received a hefty fine due to its certified compostable label. The packaging was sold in an area without a composting site within 30 miles. Thus, clear labeling for product end use is contingent upon local legislation and destinations available. 

BPI, USCC and FPI are jointly working on legislation for labeling of compostable products. The SPC is working on measuring access to composting facilities to check consistency with Federal Trade Commission Guidelines.

In addition, BPI and USCC are working together on potential revisions to the ASTM - American Society for Testing and Materials - Standards at the foundation of the BPI compostable product certification criteria. With advancement in packaging technology and anaerobic digestion (AD) coming forth as a post-consumer food waste destination, it is time to review the standards with regards to industry evolution.

Chris Weiss with DCEN was the local hero and perfect host for the group in Global Green's shared office space. Lively discussion followed Chris' presentation on the status of local D.C. initiatives and public policy.

Patrick Serfass with ABC presenting

With perfect timing, the ABC joined the meeting group to participate in evolving industry discussions. ABC Patrick Serfass executive director gave an introductory presentaiton with an overview of ABC's mission and work-in-progress. Synergies abounded and collaborative seeds were planted during breaks and intermingled within the afternoon strategy session.

After a lovely lunch catered by Whole Foods Market, the afternoon strategy session began with a discussion on the group's focus and objectives. For the 2014 meeting, the focus was on increasing organics recycling in the commercial | institutional foodservice sector (includes outdoor festivals and food trucks). Curbside (residential) and retail (grocery store) organics recycling were relegated to future meetings.

The NRA teams with the Grocery Manufacturers Association and the Food Marketing Institute in the Food Waste Reduction Alliance (FWRA). Targeted at retail grocery stores, the FWRA focuses on food waste reduction, donation and recycling. When the meeting focus expands to retail grocery, the NRA will invite the appropriate FWRA associates to join the group at the annual meeting.

Elissa Elan with NRA
during strategy session

Interwoven throughout conversations were the industry resources available for the foodservice operator via task forces, toolkits and documented case studies. In addition to those included above in the morning presentation outline, the following resources are available on-line:

• BPI Certified Products Catalogue - listing of the wide array of products BPI certified for compostability.
• BioCycle's FindAComposter.com - a free directory of composting facilities throughout North America.
• ABC Biogas Systems Map - listing of the agriculture, landfill and wastewater operational biogas systems throughout the nation; updates for food waste systems are in-process.

Business case and end markets were included as one discussion topic; strong end markets for compost and biogas are the drivers to create a sustainable value chain where all parties make a reasonable profit. 

In 2014, Maryland passed HB878 & SB814: by December 30, 2014, the State Highway Administration (SHA) is required to establish a specification for the acquisition and use of compost and compost-based products for:

• erosion & sediment control
• post-construction stormwater management

A SHA report is due to the State Assembly by December 1, 2015.

Driving policy at the state level is key to creating strong end markets. In addition to the SHA there are many other state-run agencies | divisions that benefit from compost use. Colleges | universities, parks & recreation, and state government centers are several examples.

Challenges abound in multi-tenant facilties where the foodservice operator does not control the waste | recycling contracts. In these scenarios, the tenant often pays for the organics collection yet does not benefit from the reduced landfill cost-savings. Ei's Sustainable Food Court Initiative was created in early 2011 to address the challenges associated with multi-tenant facilities.

Often organics recycling programs cost more than landfill tipping fees. Post-consumer food waste recycling programs may include packaging shift costs and upgraded consumer recycling centers with new signage.  

Holly Elmore with Ei presenting

In Ei's Source-Separated Materials Recycling Template (S-SMRT), a Total Materials Management Approach (TMMA) is used where materials with solid end markets (e.g. aluminum, mixed paper, certain plastics) subsidize more challenging streams generated in operations (e.g. food waste). The ZWA Blog article, Total Materials Management Approach, introduces TMMA and gives an in-depth S-SMRT overview.

Processing capacity emerged as the biggest industry challenge at this juncture. Without local or regional organics recycling destinations, there is little incentive for foodservice operators to convert food and beverage packaging to sustainable options. 

As Brenda emphasized in her morning presentation, the Master Composter Program is a grass roots approach to building community, even neighborhood, composting destinations that bridge gaps. The master composters are educated residents who drive a public consciousness shift towards the value of organics recycling for rebuilding healthy soil.

The majority of yard debris composting sites do not accept food waste. An educational campaign encouraging these facilities to accept food waste may collectively increase current capacity by a significant amount.

Barriers to increasing organics recycling capacity include:

• Permitting, in some states permits take an average of 18 months
• Access to land, especially in the Northeast
• Demand for organics recycling programs
• Community acceptance of organic recycling facilities
• Available financing

Biogas specific barriers include:

• Low cost financing
• Interconnection of gas and electricity
• Long-term feedstock contracts

Pre-meeting group at
Beacon Bar & Grill

Product labeling was introduced during Anne's morning presentation and included as a strategy session topic. Even with the significant label strides over the past year, especially with the SPC H2R label program, there is frustration and confusion with developing industry standards. How granular is appropriate for labels - should labels be on the product or only the transport packaging? 

As mentioned earlier one manufacturer was fined for labeling a BPI certified product compostable due to state regulations. Thus, public policy and state regulations are key to developing consistent label standards. Can national labels work with varying state regulations?

Education is key to organics recycling success.The group defined the following audiences for educational materials:

• Composters
• Foodservice operators | brand owners
• Distributors
• Packagers | manufacturers
• Packaging designers
• Purchasing associates
• Marketing | sales departments
• Legal teams
• Government officials

2015 Meeting Group Photo
see FB album for names

False compostability claims are abundant under the auspices of oxodegradable, biodegradable and omnidegradable. Within educational materials, it is important to include a section on how to identify compostable products accepted by the organics recycling destination. The ZWA Blog article, Third Party Certification Edges Industry Towards a Zero Waste Economy, identifies BPI certification as the nation's accepted standard for compostable products.

Contamination was the final topic addressed in the vibrant strategy session. Woven throughout the many topics were solutions for contamination ranging from education to labeling to industry standards. A close relationship between the food waste hauler and operator is essential to creating a clean stream. The hauler must take responsibility for the stream collected and work in partnership with the operator on creating in-house practices for contaminant-free material.

As with all successful meetings, action points were summarized as part of the closure. In 2014 the group convened for the first time mid-year via a two-hour call; in 2015 a 90-minute group call will facilitate communication throughout the year. The referenced toolkits and other industry resources are loaded onto the Ei Reference Materials page for a common research focal point. Public-access documents are available for download on the page.

The Ei FB album, Fourth Annual Sustainable F&B Packaging Value Chain Meeting, is a pictorial recap of the powerful meeting.

In the past four years, Sustainable Food & Beverage Packaging transformed from an emerging to a maturing industry. Clarity comes forth from prior years confusion in the form of a plethora of industry toolkits, webinars and resources. Standards are developing along with the necessary structure to mature into success. 

The Annual Sustainable Food & Beverage Packaging Value Chain Meeting is critical to the common industry voice and abundant collaboration among the key participating organizations. Stay tuned as the industry evolves from maturing to mature ...