In 2020, the Center for EcoTechnology (CET) received a Sustainable Materials Management grant from EPA Region 5 to work with solid waste districts and other stakeholders across Southwest Ohio, to help strengthen the wasted food marketplace. As part of this initiative, CET conducted an analysis of the marketplace, hosted multiple sector-specific and solution-specific workshops, provided direct waste assistance, and developed spotlights featuring businesses across the region. In addition to providing environmental benefits, these strategies led to cost savings and environmental satisfaction as well. Although specific initiatives are unique to each operation, the opportunities to prevent, donate, and recycle our surplus food are abundant.
View or download the full Wasted Food Solutions: Ohio Spotlights to Inspire PDF here.
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The Cincinnati Zoo:
Food Scrap Collection & Recycling Programs
The revered @CincinnatiZoo&BotanicalGarden, the second oldest Zoo in the United States, sees over 1.5 million visitors per year and houses three separate cafeterias. Recognizing this as a massive potential for waste recovery, the Zoo is committed to enhancing its waste programs from the customer- and employee-facing sides. The @CenterforEcoTechnology worked with the Zoo to raise guests’ awareness of their food scrap collection and recycling programs through bin placement and signage recommendations with the support of @HamiltonCountyR3Source. Read more about these sustainability efforts here: https://bit.ly/3w38Lyj #CETSpotlights
The revered @CincinnatiZoo, the second oldest Zoo in the United States, sees over 1.5 million visitors per year and houses three separate cafeterias. Recognizing this as a massive potential for waste recovery, the Zoo is committed to enhancing its waste programs from the customer- and employee-facing sides. @Center.For.Ecotechnology worked with the Zoo to raise guests’ awareness of their food scrap collection and recycling programs through bin placement and signage recommendations with the support of Hamilton County R3Source. #CETSpotlights
The @CincinnatiZoo is committed to enhancing its waste programs! @CETOnline worked with the Zoo to raise guests’ awareness of their food scrap collection & recycling programs through bin placement & signage recommendations. Read more: https://bit.ly/3w38Lyj #CETSpotlights
Findlay Market:
Reducing and Recovering Surplus Food
@FindlayMarket, a lively marketplace of over 50 vendors in the heart of Cincinnati, reduces and recovers surplus food through partnerships with food rescue agencies and a compost site. In 2021, the @CenterForEcoTechnology provided recommendations to improve their food scrap collection system, which reduced contamination in the many compost bins throughout the Market. Thanks to @HamiltonCountyR3Source for their support in developing these recommendations. Read the full story here: https://bit.ly/3w38Lyj #CETSpotlights
@FindlayMarket, a lively marketplace of over 50 vendors in the heart of Cincinnati, reduces and recovers surplus food through partnerships with food rescue agencies and a compost site. In 2021, @Center.For.Ecotechnology provided recommendations to improve their food scrap collection system, which reduced contamination in the many compost bins throughout the Market. Thanks to Hamilton County R3Source for their support in developing these recommendations. #CETSpotlights
A lively marketplace in Cincinnati, @FindlayMarket, reduces and recovers surplus food! In 2021, @CETOnline helped them to reduce their food waste and Hamilton County R3Source provided additional recommendations. See the full story here: https://bit.ly/3w38Lyj #CETSpotlights
Jungle Jim’s International Market
Reduced Deals to Reduce Wasted Food
A full-service grocery store operating two storefronts, @JungleJimsInternationalMarket has maintained a Reduced Deals section for over 35 years. This section features ripe, day-old, or imperfect produce, deli, and bakery items marked down from their original prices. These reduced deals attract bargain-seekers and chefs alike, while preventing wasted food and lost revenue. To help Jungle Jim’s further their sustainability efforts, the @CenterForEcoTechnology worked with the market to repurpose their hard-to-recycle pickle bucket containers. Empty pickle buckets from the store are now being repurposed by Earth Peak Organics, which will reuse them with a household food scraps recycling program. Jungle Jim’s lies within the @ButlerCountyRecyclingandSolidWasteDistrict, which offers waste reduction and recycling resources to businesses. Read the full story here: https://bit.ly/3w38Lyj #CETSpotlights
A full-service grocery store operating two storefronts, Jungle Jim’s International Market has maintained a Reduced Deals section for over 35 years. This section features ripe, day-old, or imperfect produce, plus deli and bakery items, all of which have been marked down from their original prices. These reduced deals attract bargain-seekers and chefs alike, while preventing wasted food and lost revenue from the business. To help Jungle Jim’s further their sustainability efforts, the @center.for.ecotechnology worked with the market to repurpose their hard-to-recycle pickle bucket containers. Empty pickle buckets from the store are now being repurposed by Earth Peak Organics, which will reuse them with a household food scraps recycling program. Jungle Jim’s lies within the Butler County Recycling and Solid Waste District, which offers waste reduction and recycling resources to businesses. #CETSpotlights
A full-service grocery store, @JungleJimsMrkt has kept a Reduced Deals section for over 35 years with day-old or imperfect food, to reduce waste. Read how @CETOnline helped them take their wasted food reduction efforts even further! https://bit.ly/3w38Lyj #CETSpotlights
MadTree Brewing:
Serviceware Solutions & Waste Reduction
@MadTree is more than a craft beer maker, a taproom, or an event planner; the business is also committed to reducing waste! MadTree has long been tracking the waste from its operations and brewing process to understand how they can better reduce and divert it. For over six years, the business has diverted 100% of their spent grain to Reinhardt Beef Farm, one of MadTree’s many community ties. In their taproom and at events, MadTree exclusively offers reusable, compostable, and recyclable serviceware–in that order of priority–a choice that diverted 73,000 pounds of waste from entering a landfill in 2020 alone! Read the full story here: https://bit.ly/3w38Lyj #CETSpotlights
If you’re inspired by these sustainability efforts, @HamiltonCountyR3Source offers services for reducing waste at bars and restaurants including technical assistance in setting up programs, coordination of recycling services with a hauler, donation of surplus food, and more!
@MadTreeBrewing is more than a craft beer maker, a taproom, or an event planner; the business is also committed to reducing waste! MadTree has long been tracking the waste from its operations and brewing process to understand how they can better reduce and divert it. For over six years, the business has diverted 100% of their spent grain to Reinhardt Beef Farm, one of MadTree’s many community ties. In their taproom and at events, MadTree exclusively offers reusable, compostable, and recyclable serviceware–in that order of priority–a choice that diverted 73,000 pounds of waste from entering a landfill in 2020 alone! #CETSpotlights
Craft beer maker and taproom @MadTreeBrewing is committed to reducing waste! For the past 6 years, they have diverted 100% of their spent grain and offer eco-friendly serviceware at events. Learn more about their sustainability efforts: https://bit.ly/3w38Lyj #CETSpotlights
The Foodbank in Dayton:
Hunger Relief
@TheFoodBankInc has provided hunger relief to the Montgomery, Greene, Preble, and Preble counties for over 40 years. In addition to their primary mission to rescue and distribute food, The Foodbank manages food waste in a sustainable, closed-loop system. Any food items unfit for donation are added to their industrial composting vessel. Within this system (which involves a carbon source, heat, and mechanical mixing) the food scraps break down into a soil amendment that is applied to The Foodbank’s 40 garden beds, where the organization grows the fresh produce they distribute. The @Center.For.EcoTechnology was honored to have The Foodbank host their August 2021 Composting Workshop and share their best practices at a meeting of food rescue organizations in February 2022 with support from the @MontgomeryCountySolidWasteDistrict. Read the full story here: https://bit.ly/3w38Lyj #CETSpotlights
@TheFoodBankInc has provided hunger relief to the Montgomery, Greene, Preble, and Preble counties for over 40 years. In addition to their primary mission to rescue and distribute food, The Foodbank manages food waste in a sustainable, closed-loop system. Any food items unfit for donation are added to their industrial composting vessel. Within this system (which involves a carbon source, heat, and mechanical mixing) the food scraps break down into a soil amendment that is applied to The Foodbank’s 40 garden beds, where the organization grows the fresh produce they distribute. The @center.for.ecotechnology was honored to have The Foodbank host their August 2021 Composting Workshop and share their best practices at a meeting of food rescue organizations in February 2022 with support from the Montgomery County Solid Waste District. #CETSpotlights
In addition to its primary mission to rescue and distribute food, @TheFoodbankInc manages its food waste in a sustainable, closed-loop system. Learn more about how this system works in these Ohio Spotlights: https://bit.ly/3w38Lyj #CETSpotlights