Take a Tour at O-Town's Compost Site

On the morning of September 26th, we will be opening up our composting site to the Orlando community for a tour of our operations. Come see how we have processed over 14 tons of food scraps into compost, returning nutrients to the soil. Also, there will be a permaculture component of the tour focused on growing local food and working with nature rather than against it.

It’s crazy to think how OTC has grown in the last year (hey 2020 hasn’t been all bad), and we hope to share the inspiration with everyone else. We’re not the only ones who want to see food waste recycling become commonplace in Central Florida.

After the tour, there will be a plant sale of mostly native Florida perennial plants that are easy to foster and maintain. Stepping out of the industrial food system and community composting go hand in hand, so we’re always trying to promote growing food in place of lawns.

The following tour times on 9/26 will be 10am-11am, 11am-12pm, and 12pm-1pm. Send us an email if you haven’t already to express your interest in attending. Masks are required for everyone’s safety, and you are welcome to bring guests.

NEW SERVICE! - On-farm Composting

The equine industry has a significant presence here in Central Florida, and with a great number of horses comes a great deal of manure to be managed. At O-Town Compost we specialize in the collection and processing of people’s food scraps, but since the COVID19 pandemic started, we’ve decided to venture into a new areas and diversify our business offerings. Introducing our “On-Farm Composting Service,” where a wasteful byproduct is transformed into a valuable resource.

The average horse generates 45 pounds a day of manure, and closer to 55 pounds if you include the bedding! When I first read this statistic, I was shocked! Where does all this organic material go? Does it just remain on the farm or get hauled to the landfill?

Different stable owners do different things, but typically smaller stables spread their raw manure onto the pastures in hopes that it’ll fertilize and grow more grass for their horses to graze on. Whereas, larger stables, lacking the proper time or heavy machinery to spread manure, will opt for renting a dumpster to fill and send to the local landfill for disposal. One dumpster load can cost a couple hundred of dollars to haul, and contributes to the ever growing mountain of organic waste that notoriously comprises 40 percent of all landfill waste.

It just so happens that horse and cow manure are the perfect consistency to make a crumbly and earthy compost. Manure alone has around a 25:1 Carbon to Nitrogen ratio being perfect for the active composting process. No outside feedstock is necessary to achieve a quality final product, but something, such as food waste, can be added without negatively affecting the result. The longer you let the manure dry out, the higher its carbon content becomes and it becomes better to add a nitrogen-heavy food waste.

Excitingly, O-Town Compost has begun construction on our first Aerated Static Pile (ASP) compost bin at Scala Stables located in East Orlando near University of Central Florida. Additionally, our services include regular weekly monitoring and upkeep, screening and transport of the finish compost, and technical assistance. Stable owners are left with a comprehensive instructional packet, and the ability to call anytime they’re experiencing a problem or have a question.

Advantages of choosing our composting method:

• Eliminate the time and expense of off-site disposal

• Produce finished compost in 60 days or less without turning the pile

• Destroy parasites, pathogens and weed seeds in the finished product

• Stop offensive odors

• Significantly reduce flies, rodents and other pests

• Improve your animals’ health

• Create nutrient-rich compost product that is safe to use on pastures and gardens

• Utilize the finished compost for an absorbent stall bedding

• Earn revenue by selling your finished soil amendment and create a return on your investment

• Enhance the appearance and value of your farm or stable.

If you or someone you know could benefit from this easy-to-use and environmentally friendly solution for on-farm waste management, please send us an email at info@o-towncompost.com.

Silly horse rolling around in the dirt.

The Community Composting Movement Is Gaining Momentum

The founding of O-Town Compost was heavily influenced by other community composting operations around the country, like Bootstrap Compost in Boston, Let Us Compost in Athens, GA, and Rust Belt Riders in Cleveland. All are great examples of small local composters with a long list of residential subscribers who have been diverting massive quantities of food waste and making a positive contribution to their surrounding cities. The opportunity exists in every U.S. city, where successful organics programs are typically nowhere to be found, and the local governments are more focused on improving lagging recycling programs. Food waste management has been left to the private sector to deal with in large part.

Typically, the large waste haulers (a.k.a. Big Waste), like Waste Management and Republic Services, would get involved in the action, but since they have a constant inflow of trash into their landfills and incinerators, they’re okay with the status quo. Food waste is heavy after all, and the more tonnage coming into the landfill means more revenue. Although, it’s doubtful that these big companies will remain on the sidelines for long. In the meantime, small micro-haulers are carving out a niche in cities across the East Coast, South, and Mid-West.

Community Composters around the U.S.

The Institute of Local Self Reliance (ILSR) has been an instrumental part of the composting movement with their “Composting For Community” Podcast, and the organization of webinars and conferences to bring the nation’s decentralized composters together for sharing knowledge. One of ILSR’s feature writers, Neil Seldman, has been a force in his activism and criticism against Big Waste for years. Mr. Seldman’s article in December of 2018, “Monopoly and the U.S. Waste Knot” inspired O-Town Compost’s founder to look differently at the waste industry he was part of and at current U.S. recycling practices. Ultimately, recycling has suffered since the introduction of single stream, which was a recycling program talked up by large waste haulers looking to vertically integrate their collection systems. If you’re interested in making the greatest environmental impact, diverting food waste is the clear winner over standard recycling. Thus, O-Town Compost was born with food waste in mind, and the wind at our backs. Seemingly, there is unimaginable potential to repair Orlando’s eco-system and shift away from landfill waste management in Orange County, FL.