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Up to 40% of food is lost or wasted along the value chain, contributing to a number of environmental, economic, and social consequences.
While food waste is a complex issue affecting every stage of the food supply chain, the role of businesses cannot be ignored, with overproduction, supply chain inefficiencies, and spoilage all leading to food waste and climate change.
By adopting sustainable waste management solutions—like commercial composting— companies can reduce their environmental footprint and achieve sustainability goals.
Keep reading to better understand the importance of commercial composting in modern organic waste strategies—how it works, what systems are available, and how it can benefit your business.
Key Takeaways
- Food spoilage coverage typically applies to food damaged by prolonged power outages, equipment breakdowns, or mechanical failures.
- Food contamination coverage usually applies when there’s a verified public health risk or a required recall, covering expenses such as replacing contaminated food and conducting medical tests for employees.
- There are different types of insurance that may cover food loss, including commercial property insurance, food spoilage insurance, food contamination insurance, business interruption insurance, and product liability insurance.
- Not all spoilage is covered by insurance, with policies typically excluding spoilage caused by poor maintenance, equipment wear and tear, uncovered events, supply chain disruptions, lack of proof, and more.
What Is Commercial Composting?
Commercial composting is a large-scale process that involves collecting and processing organic waste—such as food scraps and yard trimmings—to support waste reduction and environmental sustainability. This waste management solution often serves industries, municipalities, and institutions to increase landfill diversion, offering faster processing times and larger-scale capacity compared to home composting.
The result of this process is commercial compost, a nutrient-rich soil amendment that can be used to improve soil health, prevent soil erosion, and improve water quality.
How the Commercial Composting Process Works?
Composting is nature’s way of recycling organic matter. However, large-scale composting—such as that required for commercial composting—isn’t as simple as it may seem.
The commercial composting process is a highly controlled process that requires careful management to produce high-quality compost in a safe, timely, and environmentally sound manner.
1. Collection and Transportation of Organic Waste
The commercial composting process begins with the collection of organic waste. Waste management companies carefully transport these materials, ensuring they follow best practices to maintain compliance and minimize contamination.
To streamline this process and reduce contamination even further, businesses, institutions, and industries should separate compostable materials at the source whenever possible.
2. Sorting and Preprocessing
The waste must then be sorted and prepared for composting—a critical step in making sure only compostable materials are processed. During this stage, composting facilities remove contaminants like plastic, glass, and metal.
After sorting, the organic material undergoes preprocessing, such as size reduction, the removal of contaminants, and adjustments to the moisture and nutrient content.
3. Composting Phase (Active Biological Decomposition)
The third phase is where the magic happens. Here, the preprocessed waste is put into the commercial composting system to be decomposed by microorganisms such as bacteria and fungi. Cornell Composting gives us insight into this process, stating that, “In compost, fungi are important because they break down tough debris, enabling bacteria to continue the decomposition process once most of the cellulose has been exhausted.”
For this process to be successful, every detail must be carefully monitored, with factors like temperature, oxygen, moisture content, and carbon-to-nitrogen ratio affecting the overall quality of the compost, the time required for decomposition, and the potential for odors.
4. Curing and Maturation
The composting stage is followed by the curing and maturation stage—the stage that allows the compost to stabilize and develop its final nutrient-rich properties. During this period, the temperature of the compost gradually decreases. This ensures the compost is stable and won’t continue breaking down in the soil, which could otherwise harm plant growth due to remaining undecomposed organic matter.
5. Screening and Final Use
Composting facilities must then screen the compost to improve its quality and consistency. During this final step, any oversized or non-decomposed materials—such as stones or branches—are removed to ensure a high-quality output. The compost will then be sorted into grades or sizes depending on its intended end use.
Types of Commercial Composting Systems
Not every composting system is the same—they each have unique characteristics suited to specific operational needs, available space, and processing goals.
By understanding the different systems available, your company can make a more informed decision regarding which system best aligns with your requirements.
1. Aerated Static Pile Composting
Aerated static pile composting is a system where organic waste is assembled into large piles and aerated using a network of pipes or blowers. To achieve this, the compost pile is placed on top of a bed of perforated pipes through which air is circulated.
By pushing the air with blowers or pulling it with negative pressure systems, the need to manually turn the pile is eliminated. This approach is known for expediting the composting process and serves as an effective method for stabilizing large quantities of waste in smaller spaces.
2. Windrow Composting
Windrow composting consists of placing a mixture of organic feedstocks in long, narrow piles called “windrows” that are then agitated or “turned” on a regular basis. One of the benefits of this approach is that it can handle large volumes of waste, which is essential for commercial composting.
However, the constant turning of materials is also a downside of this method, as it exacerbates emissions and odors. For this reason, windrow composting is best suited to rural areas with low population density.
3. In-Vessel Composting
In-vessel composting is a method where organic materials are placed into enclosed environments such as drums, tunnels, or containers to be decomposed. This is a highly controlled process, allowing for better management of temperature, moisture, and aeration.
As explained by the EPA, “In-vessel technology is more suitable than other composting technologies in suburban and urban settings because the system allows for containment and treatment of air to remove odors before release. The requirement for a relatively small amount of land also increases its applicability in these settings over other types of composting.”
Each commercial composting system offers distinct advantages and considerations. With Shapiro’s food waste recycling solutions, we consider factors such as waste volume, available space, operational goals, and regulatory requirements to help you choose the right strategy for your business.
*Interested in learning the difference between aerobic and anaerobic composting? Read our blog: aerobic vs anaerobic composting
Commercial Composting vs. Industrial Composting
While the terms “commercial composting” and “industrial composting” are often used interchangeably, they do have distinctions in scale, complexity, and the types of materials processed.
By understanding the differences between the two, your business can ensure it chooses the facility and system best suited to its needs.
What Is Industrial Composting?
Industrial composting is generally considered a more advanced form of large-scale composting, as it can process a broader range of organic materials—including tougher and more complex items such as compostable plastics and certain industrial organic waste streams.
Key Differences Between Commercial and Industrial Composting
While both commercial composting and industrial composting focus on organic waste management, commercial composting typically serves everyday business waste streams, whereas industrial composting may cater to more complex waste profiles. This may include items like biodegradable waste and specialized packaging.
Examples of Industrial Composting Facilities
Industrial composting facilities often serve entire regions or major industries, processing hundreds of tons of material daily. For instance, these facilities may work with manufacturers, large-scale food processors, or cities implementing compostable packaging mandates.
A great example of this is the Kingsbury Bioenergy Complex—a facility located about 70 miles outside of Chicago that is expected to process 200 tons of organic waste daily into renewable natural gas, biochar, organic fertilizer, and compost.
At Shapiro, we’re excited to announce that we’ll be the exclusive provider of feedstock to this facility, demonstrating our commitment to sustainability initiatives.
Why Commercial Composting Matters for Businesses
Businesses across distinct industries contribute to the food waste crisis. From food production and hospitality to retail and manufacturing, the advantages of commercial composting in strategic operations are becoming increasingly clear.
Reducing Landfill Costs and Disposal Fees
The benefits of recycling food go beyond reducing a company’s environmental impact— though that alone is a powerful incentive.
Diverting organic waste from landfills also helps reduce the cost of traditional waste disposal. With landfill disposal costs rising across the United States, adopting a practical strategy—such as composting—can help reduce tipping and hauling fees.
1. Supporting Corporate Sustainability and ESG Goals
An increasing number of businesses are prioritizing sustainability—great news for the environment, their pockets, and their brand reputation.
With waste diversion metrics, carbon footprint reduction, and resource recovery all contributing to comprehensive sustainability reporting, commercial composting serves as a valuable strategy for achieving corporate sustainability initiatives and meeting Environmental, Social, and Governance commitments.
2. Meeting Evolving Regulatory Requirements
To meet the U.S.’ goal of cutting food loss and waste in half by the year 2030, an increasing number of laws have been passed requiring the diversion of organic waste from landfills or mandating that businesses manage their food waste responsibly.
That said, composting for businesses helps organizations stay ahead of regulations, avoid fines, improve compliance, and demonstrate proactive environmental leadership.
3. Enhancing Brand Image and Public Perception
Increasing sustainability efforts is a great way to appeal to consumers, investors, and the general public. Whether you effectively reduce food waste in restaurants with composting or require advanced biochar production solutions to minimize your environmental impact, sustainable waste management is an important part of your brand’s identity.
It’s true: food waste is a multifaceted issue that requires careful planning to overcome.
However, the incentives of reducing food waste are strong—commercial composting offers operational, financial, and reputational benefits that appeal to companies of all sizes.
And with the help of a waste management partner, composting is easier than ever.
Conclusion
Considering adopting composting to enhance your sustainability efforts? Want to ensure regulatory compliance and operational efficiency?
As experts in commercial composting, we ensure that you don’t have to navigate new waste management strategies alone. Our team at Scopic creates tailored strategies for an array of business needs, addressing areas like beverage waste destruction and agricultural waste recycling to ensure you find the right solution for your unique business needs.
Contact us today to learn more about our services.
Baily Ramsey, an accomplished marketing specialist, brings a unique blend of anthropological insight and marketing finesse to the digital landscape. Specializing in educational content creation, she creates content for various industries, with a particular interest in environmental initiatives.
