Martha's Cafe Composting and FAQ

Hello All,

On Monday, February 23, Martha's Cafe (MVR) started composting in the front and back-of house. If you are unfamiliar with what is compostable, have no fear! Just look at the examples on the board to figure out what to put in each compost, recycling, or "landfill" bin.

To clarify some concerns, here are some answers to frequently asked questions.

1. Are the toothpicks compostable?

The toothpick itself is compostable; however, the plastic "frilly" part of the toothpick is not compostable. To be pro-active, we highly recommend that you break off the "frilly" part of the toothpick and throw that part away. The rest of the toothpick can be composted.

2. I saw someone compost a FreshTake container, is that compostable?

All Cornell Dining FreshTake containers are in fact compostable. Although they may look like plastic, they are actually made from PLA, which stands for polylactic acid, or more simply made from corn. To make the process of sorting easier, all FreshTake stickers and salad dressing containers are also made out of PLA and can be composted all together.

To determine if an item is made from PLA, look at the bottom of the container for the word "PLAstic", which signifies that it is made from PLA and should be composted.

3. Are my utensils compostable?

As of now, the utensils at Cornell Dining and Retail outlets are not compostable and should be thrown away because they are made out of plastic. However, compostable utensils are found at Moosewood Cafe at Anabel Taylor and Mandibles Cafe in Mann Library, which are both locations that have composting facilities.

4. What happens if I throw non-compostable items in the compost bin?

Any contaminants in either the compost or recycling bin will result in "rejected" bags, which means that any plastic or metal found in any of the bins will cause the whole bag to be thrown away instead. Non-compostable and non-recyclable items should be thrown away. It is very important that you sort out your items properly so that each bag can be accepted.


We appreciate your cooperation with the composting program. Please remember to compost and recycle before throwing items in the "landfill"!

If you have any other questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me through the comment box or email.

Stay green,

Jaimee

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The BRGG Composting 101 Education Campaign

Hello All,

Starting Monday, February 9, we will be starting our Composting 101 Education Campaign at Mattin's Cafe in Duffield Hall from 10:30 am to 1:00 PM. At our table, you'll be able to learn more about post-consumer composting and what exactly should be composted, recycled, or thrown away. Also, you'll get a cool "I composted today" sticker!

Here's a quick catch-up for you all:


What is composting?

According to the US Environmental Protection Agency, composting is defined as a natural process that combines organic wastes (e.g., yard trimmings, food wastes, manures) to create a soil amendment that helps plants grow. With the aid of high temperatures, the materials are broken down to create the soil. Because food waste is a significant percentage of all waste in the United States, the action to compost is a sustainable step forward in reducing waste and in turn giving back to the environment.

Which Cornell Dining locations do post-consumer composting?

At Cornell Dining, we do back-of-house (in the kitchen) composting at all our Dining Hall (all-you can-eat) locations. We are currently moving towards post-consumer composting as well for the our retail locations.

Currently we are composting in the front-of-house at:

• Ivy Room (Willard Straight Hall)
• Mattin's Cafe (Duffield Hall)
• Moosewood at Anabel Taylor (Anabel Taylor Hall)
• Synapsis Cafe (Weill Hall)
• Trillium Cafe (Kennedy Hall)
  

Coming soon

• Martha's Cafe (Martha Van Rensselaer Hall)

What should be composted?

• All food scraps
  
• Napkins
• Cartons
• PLA containers and utensils
  
• PLA stands for polylactic acid and is produced from corn
• Most Cornell Dining locations have switched over to PLA containers for its "FreshTake" products
• The PLA container is light brown (vs. the black plastic container) and can be completely composted (even the sticker is made from corn!)
  
• Paper
  

What should be recycled?

• Plastic bottles
• Glass bottles
• Aluminum cans
  

What should be thrown away into the trash?

• Plastic material (i.e. straws, wrappers, utensils)
• Metal
• Anything that cannot be recycled or composted
  

Remember to compost and recycle at our composting locations!

Thanks to SNRC, the Sustainability Hub, and the Master Composters for helping us with our campaign!

Stay green,

Jaimee Estreller

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The Big Red Goes Green Has Resurrected!

Hello Folks,

My name is Jaimee Estreller '10 and I am one of the student sustainability coordinators for Cornell Dining along with Fil Eden '10. Basically, this is the unofficial spot where you can get all your Cornell Dining information. The purpose of this blog is to update you on our projects from a student-t0-student perspective (aka on a more informal level). My goal for this semester is to increase student awareness about sustainability and how Cornell Dining is achieving that with its new projects.

For me, the first step was to resurrect this blog. It's still a work in progress, so please bear the changes that may pop up from time to time. But, I'll be writing some interesting stuff--stay tuned!

Secondly, I created a Facebook group for students to join. Check it out and sport your Big Red Goes Green pride by joining today!

Now that the blog has been resurrected, I shall make sure to keep it alive. I'll be back with some updates soon.

Stay green,

Jaimee

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