Reduce Food WasteHome CompostingCommercial Food Waste

40% of food in the United States goes to waste! The waste

  • begins on farms
  • continues in transport and processing of food, and
  • peaks at retail and restaurant facilities
  • but it doesn’t stop there…

Americans waste the equivalent of one of every four bags of groceries they bring home. Fortunately, there are lots of easy, money-saving ways to:

  • recycle food scraps with Emmet County Recycling.
  • recycle food scraps at home
  • reclaim or redirect food that might otherwise go to waste and/or
  • reduce your food waste

To make it easy to get started, we have developed the following (with support from the Petoskey-Harbor Springs Area Community Foundation):

Of course, to “close the loop” and benefits gardens, compost is available for sale bagged and in bulk at the Pleasantview Road Drop-off Center.

Tools for Managing Food Waste at Home

Home Composting Bins at Wholesale Prices

For information on the bins we have available at the Pleasantview Drop-off Center, click here.

Drop-off Food Scraps for Composting

WHAT:

  • Fruits & vegetables
  • Meat, fish, & bones
  • Milk & cheese
  • Pasta, bread, & rice
  • Beans
  • Nuts and nut shells
  • Paper napkins & paper plates
  • Greasy paper bags and pizza box liners

But NO:

  • Plastic items unless they are specifically labelled “BPI certified compostable”
  • No twist ties
  • No stickers or labels
  • No wrappers
  • No frilled toothpicks

WHERE:

Pleasantview Drop-off Center

  • All Year Round
  • Monday-Friday 8:00-4:00
  • Saturday 8:00-3:00

2024 Farmers Markets - details to be announced

Compost for Sale!

Close the loop: give your plants some of the compost produced from area food scraps! Visit our compost page for all the details!

Recycle Cooking Oil and Fats

WHAT:

  • Cooking oil
  • Fat, including raw trimmings
  • Grease from cooking

But NO:

Motor oil, lubricating greases

HOW:

FREE!

  1. Collect your fats, oil and greases in an unbreakable container with a lid
  2. Once the container is full, bring it to the Drop-off Center
  3. Empty the contents into the black cooking oil recycling bin
  4. Take the container home to reuse, or recycle it

WHERE:

Cooking oil and grease are accepted at the Pleasantview Drop-off Center in the black bin near the drop site and food scraps.