Food scraps make up a significant portion of solid waste in New York — about 18% — yet only a fraction of that amount is required by law to be recycled.
In January 2022, the Food Donation and Food Scraps Recycling law took effect, requiring certain large generators of waste — grocery stores, some restaurants and a few colleges — to donate their excess food and recycle food scraps. However, the law states that these generators are only required to recycle such food waste if they are within 25 miles of an organics recycler — like an anaerobic digester or composting facility.
The need for adequate management of organic waste is increased because of the state’s recently proposed solid waste management plan. The proposal is needed to reimagine handling waste on Long Island, where the Brookhaven Landfill is slated to close in the coming years. Without the landfill, organic waste will no longer be able to be burned into ash and disposed of there, leaving the option to send waste elsewhere in New York or out of state — or embrace the trend of food scrap donation and recycling instead.
Food scraps include inedible food, trimmings from food preparation, paper soiled from food and edible food that isn’t donated. This is sometimes referred to as food waste, but Mark Haubner, of North Fork Environmental Council, said there needs to be a shift away from that sort of language.
“We keep insisting on calling it ‘waste,’” Haubner said during an environmental symposium at Stony Brook University in mid-March. “Public perception is that food waste is gross and should be sent away, but if we change the language and the framing to honor our food as a resource,” he added, noting only then will large-scale food recycling be possible.
Under the current law, there are 250 large generators of food waste throughout Long Island, and all of them must donate. However, only 73 — 29.2% — must recycle due to their locations.
A draft of the state’s decennial waste management plan recommends lawmakers expand the law to not only eliminate that 25-mile requirement, but increase the development of smaller generators to donate and recycle food scraps.
“We believe the nature of solid waste in New York state [...] can move many more miles than that — it’s overly restrictive, and somewhat inhibiting of material being recycled,” Sally Rowland, an environmental engineer for the state Department of Environmental Conservation, said during an informational meeting on the plan last week.
“We think that would help to open up the movement and the recycling of organics,” she added.
Rowland said there is a need for more facilities statewide — and especially on Long Island — that can recycle food scraps. “It’s not just about recycling. It’s about waste reduction; it’s about food donation. Those all have a critical role, as well,” Rowland said. FeedingNYS is partnered with the state Department of Environmental Conservation to help businesses and institutions donate their unused food.
Long Island generates about 512,550 tons of food scraps every year, Rowland said. The region’s largest generators recycle approximately 42,000 tons through the state food scrap law, which is about 8% of the island’s total food scraps.
“We always think of grocery stores and restaurants as generators, and they certainly are, but in our home is a huge part of this generation point,” Rowland said at the symposium.
Although households are not required to recycle or donate food scraps yet, Haubner said this sort of “behavior change” could help reduce the amount of municipal solid waste generated on Long Island.
In 2022, the North Fork Environmental Council partnered with Riverhead’s Environmental Advisory Committee to begin their “Food Scraps-to-Compost” pilot program. A handful of Calverton homes, farms and restaurants gave their food scraps to local agricultural sites to be made into compost, which was used to create nutrient-rich soil.
The Long Island Organics Council is launching Long Island’s first food scrap drop-off site this May in Riverhead. It is partnering with the North Fork Environmental Council, the Greater Calverton Civic Association and New York State Pollution Prevention Institute. Town residents will be able to bring their food scraps from home to be composted.
The institute also provides some easy tips that can help reduce the amount of food that is wasted. The institute recommends planning meals in advance to prevent over-buying. Meal prepping can also make it easier to avoid certain things going to waste. Haubner also emphasizes the importance of using leftovers — suggesting “leftovers” instead be referred to as “ingredients” that can be used in new dishes.
The public comment period for the draft state waste management plan is May 15. Haubner said he agrees with its message of urgency to a shift to a “circular economy,” which would reduce overuse of materials and look at waste as a resource that can then be used for new products. He said that will require municipalities to plan alongside communities to help Long Island residents build a new relationship with their garbage.
“Now it is time to give people the guidance for this action,” Haubner told elected officials and the private sector who attended the symposium. “Now it is time for us to lead.”
