Zero Waste Holidays: Food Scraps and Leftovers

This holiday season, as you are preparing delicious meals for friends and family, be sure to consider the environmental impacts your actions can make. By placing your food waste, scraps and uneaten leftovers in the green organics bin where they will be composted can make a positive lasting impact on our environment.

Did you know that when food waste is sent to the landfill, it produces methane gas, a harmful greenhouse gas that contributes to climate change? It's why composting food scraps, allowing them to decompose properly, is not only beneficial to our soil and gardens, but it also reduces the amount of harmful greenhouse gases we produce.

We must do our part to reduce harmful greenhouse gas emissions. CA SB 1383, signed into law in 2016, is a statewide effort to divert organic materials from reaching our landfill. You can help by composting your organic materials at home or by properly sorting and placing your organic materials in your green organics bin so these nutrient rich materials can be diverted to a composting facility versus going to our local landfill. By properly sorting and composting your organic materials we can all do our part to slow climate change!

Zero Waste Holiday Food Tips

• If it grows then it goes in the green bin or your home compost bin.
• Before you go shopping, assess what you have in your pantry to avoid buying duplicates and thereby reducing food waste.
• When grocery shopping, be sure to bring reusable shopping bags.
• When cooking, set up a big bowl, paper bag, or kitchen compost tub close by so your food scraps stay out of the trash and can be easily placed in your green bin.
• When clearing plates, scrape food left on plates into the same container you used to catch your kitchen food scraps then place food waste in your green bin.
• Love your leftovers by transforming them into tasty dishes such as casseroles and sandwiches.

If it grows then it goes in the green organics bin or your home compost bin. You can compost any food scrap including those that aren't used in your actual recipe such as a peel, egg shells, a stem, or a pit. Food-soiled paper items like coffee filters, parchment paper, and tea bags can also go in your green organics bin or added to your home compost. This isn't just a holiday tip, but one that you can continue throughout the year!

For more Zero Waste Tips, visit, Zero Waste Santa Rosa and Sonoma County Zero Waste.