8 Good Reasons Your Business Should Be Composting Food Waste
Across the U.S., food waste is the top contributor to filling up U.S. landfills, making up 22% of municipal solid waste. But what if we told you that you could recycle your food scraps into something that boosts employee morale, increases brand loyalty, and benefits the environment? Well, with composting, you can help your business and the planet at the same time.
As the climate crisis grows in severity, composting is a great way to help fight climate change while supporting the success of your business. Here are eight ways composting can benefit your business and the environment.
Composting can…
1. Mitigate Greenhouse Gas Emissions
Why should businesses compost? Well, because everyone should. When organic materials are left to decompose in a landfill, the lack of oxygen in the waste-packed environment results in the release of methane gas. As methane gas is effective in trapping heat, it is a heavy contributor to the rising atmosphere and ocean temperatures.
But by composting, you can transform your leftover organic material into stable soil carbon that retains both water and nutrients. The production and use of this compost can help increase sustainable food production, remove carbon from the atmosphere, and combat greenhouse gasses.
2. Set Your Business Apart
Often, entrepreneurial success rides on a business’s ability to stay ahead of the competition. Composting can set your business apart from competitors in the eyes of eco-conscious consumers.
Embracing the composting process can demonstrate innovation to your customers and stakeholders — indicating that you care enough about the environment to implement eco-conscious programs into your daily business operations.
3. Increase Brand Loyalty
The positive effects composting has on the environment and your community are among the largest advantages for businesses. With the environmental crisis we currently face, more people are looking at a company’s eco-friendly habits before making buying choices. According to PwC, 77% of people are influenced by a company’s environmental record before doing business with it.
The resources we consume, the garbage we produce, and their effect on the environment are all a part of “our environmental footprint.” Taking steps to reduce your footprint may attract eco-conscious clients who are aware of the environmental effects of companies they patronize and partner with. Composting initiatives can also build stronger bonds with customers who appreciate and support eco-conscious brands — leading to an increase in brand loyalty and repeat business.
4. Enhance Investor Perception and Public Image
If you want to attract more investors and improve your company’s public impression, implementing a composting program is a simple first step. Composting can elevate your company’s reputation by framing your business as a socially responsible and environmentally conscious entity. Having the reputation of an eco-friendly business can be attractive to socially aware customers, employees, and investors.
People want to work for, patronize, and invest in organizations that care about the environment. According to a study from IBM, when it comes to accepting a job offer or staying at a business, 70% of potential or existing employees say that sustainability programs make employers more attractive. The top talent in your industry can afford to be picky about where they work and who they invest in — as their expertise makes them a hot commodity.
If you include information about your business’s composting program in your marketing materials, you’ll gain the attention of talent who want to engage with a company they can feel good about supporting.
5. Attract Top Talent
6. Foster Employee Engagement
Companies are always looking for new ways to engage employees. Wanting to increase employee engagement makes sense, as engaged teams are 21% more productive than those who are not.
Providing an opportunity to help the environment with a composting program can help generate a sense of purpose and community amongst employees. With a strong sense of community, your employees could feel a boost in morale and satisfaction — potentially improving productivity and retention rates.
7. Create Educational Opportunities
Implementing a composting program can also serve as an educational tool for employees and stakeholders. Your business can raise awareness about sustainability issues and promote environmentally friendly practices beyond the workplace.
For example, sharing tips and tricks for successfully composting organic food waste will enable your employees to take composting habits from the workplace to their homes.
8. Enable Consistent Compliance
As the climate crisis grows, many areas are adopting stricter waste diversion and sustainability policies.
According to Mass.gov, “MassDEP regulations ban disposal of food and other organic wastes from businesses and institutions that generate more than one-half ton of these materials per week.” Additionally, the City of Austin, Texas, recently updated its Universal Recycling Ordinance to require multifamily properties to compost by Fall 2024.
Regular composting will aid your company in remaining compliant to avoid any penalties and legal difficulties.
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Compost with Moonshot
At Moonshot Compost, we’re delivering the valuable process of composting out of backyards and into the corporate world.
See how you can partner with Moonshot to reduce your ecological footprint, give back to your community, and demonstrate your ESG commitment.
