What types of organic waste do you recommend food businesses focus on when starting a food waste recycling program?
Food businesses interested in improving their bottom line and reducing their environmental impact should start by separating and recycling food that is being thrown away with trash. This will have an immediate impact by lowering disposal costs and putting wasted food to better use, creating renewable energy and healthy soil instead of letting it go to waste in landfills. Simply put, if you are a grocery store, restaurant, cafeteria, food processor, or food distributor, and you’re throwing all your trash, food included, in one bin, you’re throwing away more than just food, you’re throwing away money.

How can businesses identify opportunities within their operations to divert organic waste from landfill?
Start by conducting an informal audit of what your business is throwing away. You may be surprised that your trash includes a significant portion of food that can be separated and recycled instead. Review where product loss or waste happens in your process. That might be at the manufacturing line, in warehousing, or at the distribution point. A lot of businesses are sending valuable organic material to landfill just because it’s packaged or logistically complicated to manage. We work with businesses to assess their operations and waste and help identify what can be diverted and then provide a clear pathway for that material to be recycled through our system. It’s about understanding the flow of materials and building the right handling process around it.

What are the practical steps for a company to start an organic recycling program internally or with a partner?
For most businesses, the process begins with an assessment of waste volume, material types, and logistics. As your organics recycling partner, we provide both package and pallet separation, as well as recycling through our anaerobic digestion facilities. Our goal is to make the process simple, so your team can focus on your core business while we manage the organics.
Finding the right hauler is also critical. We’re happy to refer you to trusted collection partners who specialize in organic waste services, whether you need toter pickup, compactor service, or full tractor trailer transport to one of our two facilities.

What benefits (operational, reputational, or financial) can companies gain from investing in organics recycling?
There are several. Operationally, it reduces reliance on landfills and ensures compliance with regulations. Reputationally, it helps businesses show real commitment to sustainability and responsible waste practices, which customers and stakeholders care about more than ever. On the financial side, there’s often a cost benefit to diverting materials, especially when landfill rates are rising. It’s a win across multiple fronts.

What trends or innovations in organics recycling should business leaders be paying attention to right now?
One trend that’s changed the game is food waste depackaging. Food no longer needs to be removed from its packaging, making it significantly easier for those operating food businesses to start recycling food waste. Bags, bottles, and other containers are loaded into the depackaging equipment that mechanically removes the food. This is a significant improvement for any grocery store, restaurant, cafeteria, or other food business that wants to start recycling.

Another major improvement is with food on pallets from distribution companies. Palleted food has traditionally been difficult to manage and requires a lot of labor just to throw it away, let alone recycle. BTS has been at the forefront of solving this solution by opening and now operating the Maryland Organics Recovery Center in Halethorpe, MD. This warehouse receives pallets at our docks and sends the packaged food waste to our digester, and recycles any recoverable cardboard, metals, or plastics, making it as easy for food distribution companies as loading a truck and scheduling a delivery.