United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
                           Solid Waste and
                           Emergency Response
                           (5306W)
EPA-530-F-98-023
September 1998
www epa. gov/osw
                                                          Waste
                                                        Reduction
Don't  Throw
Away  That
Strategies  for Record-Setting
Waste Reduction
   The  Waste  Reduction Record-Setters  Project  fosters
   development of exceptional waste reduction programs by
   documenting successful ones. These programs can be used as models ;
   others implementing their own programs to reduce garbage. This fact sheet packet is
   oriented toward commercial and institutional food discard generators, and highlights
   record-setting food recovery programs.

 Food discards: what are they and where do they come from?
   Food discards (fud dis-kards):food preparation wastes and uneaten food from households,
   commercial establishments, institutions, and industries.1
    Major generators: restaurants, supermarkets, produce stands, school cafeterias, hospitals, food
 processors,farmers, hotels, prisons, employee lunch rooms, and community events.
    Examples: leftovers, outdated bread, wilted lettuce, surplus canned goods, vegetable peels,
 and fruit pits.


   Why recover food discards?
       According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture Economic Research Service, if 5% of
       consumer, retail, and food service food discards from 1995 were recovered, savings from
   landfill costs alone would be about $50 million dollars annually.2  Recovering 5% of losses from
   these three sources "would represent the equivalent of a day's food for each of 4 million
   people."3 Food discards comprise 6.7% by weight of the total U.S. municipal solid waste stream.
   In 1995,14,000,000 tons of food discards were generated. Of this, only 4.1%, 600,000 tons, was
   diverted, or recovered, from the traditional disposal destinations of landfills and incinerators.4
       Almost any business can successfully create fewer discards by buying less, and can divert
    food discards from landfills. Businesses with record-setting food diversion programs are
     recovering 50 to 100% of their food discards and  reducing their overall solid waste by 33 to
      85%. Often, recovery of food and other organics is just one part of a successful overall
      waste reduction program that realizes both environmental and economic benefits. Your
       program can allow you to:
         •  Avoid trash collection and disposal fees;
         •  Provide food to the needy;
         •  Recover the nutrient value of the food as compost or animal food;
         •  Help your community meet local and state waste reduction goals;
         •  Sustain local industries and jobs; and
         •  Create an improved public image for your business.

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Recovery Options
   Yaur choice of recovery methods will
   depend on many factors.These
Include the quantity and type of food
discards, availability of space for on-site
recovery, existence of haulers and/or
end users for off-site recovery, and
program costs. Food discard recovery
methods include making donations,
processing Into animal feed, rendering,
and composting. Off-site methods
Involve food discard generators, haulers,
and end users.

Food Donations

    Non-perishable and unspoiled
perishable food can be donated to local
food banks, soup kitchens, and shelters.
Local and national programs frequently
offer free pfck-up and provide reusable
containers to donors. To encourage
food donations, all 50 states and the
District of Columbia have enacted
"Good Samaritan" laws that protect
from liability those donors who take
adequate measures to prevent food
spoilage or contamination.

Animal Feed

    Recovering food discards as animal
feed is not new. In many areas hog
farmers have traditionally relied on food
discards to sustain their livestock.
Farmers may provide storage containers
and free or low-cost pick-up service.
Coffee grounds and foods with high salt
content are not usually accepted, as
they can be harmful to livestock.
At least one company is
using technology to
convert food discards into
a high-quality, dry,
pelletized animal feed.
Food discards are also
used to make pet food.

Rendering

    Liquid fats and solid meat products
can be used as raw materials in the
rendering industry, which converts
them into animal food, cosmetics, soap,
and other products. Many companies
will provide storage barrels and free
pick-up service.
Composting
    Composting can be done both on-
and off-site. Available land space as
well as haulers and end users in your
area will help you decide which is
better for you. If you compost on-site,
you will need to consider
carbon/nitrogen ratios. Food scraps
provide most of the nitrogen, while
bulking agents such as newspaper,
cardboard, and wood chips provide
carbon. The moisture and carbon
content of your food discards will
determine how much bulking agent
you should add. Temperature and
aeration are other important factors
that will determine how long it takes
materials to compost. Composting can
take many forms:

•  Unaerated Static Pile Composting:
Organic discards are piled and mixed
with a bulking material.  This method is
best suited for small operations; it
cannot accommodate meat or grease.
Organics are formeJ^fitQ rows or long
piles and aerated Aber passively or
               tti   » MJ     ""*   "* '
mechanically. Thjsjriethod can
accommodate lafge quantities of
organics.  It canJsLa,ccprjrimodate large
amounts of meiKorjjrea'se without  _ '
           Jil*i ^ mm ii  ™  - ,    »   ^   p
frequent turning and careful
temperatujgarid^moisture control.
            ejty or "sizes, ana, have
       •	nprafcWS;'li:.l"'j'-:'''vrr: •''"''   .".
some tygg of mechanical mixing or
aeratin
, .|n-yesse( composting
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     roduces high-quality compost.
              ii	iiEiis
        roducts or arease cannot be

-------
Running A  Food Recovery Program
Some Questions  and  Answers
Q
     How can I create a record-setting
     program?       /
A     There is more thari one way to
     create and measure a successful
 food recovery progratn. Successful
 programs usually have two defining
 qualities:they greatly reduce the amount
 of food discards sent to the landfill or
 incinerator, and they save money in
 comparison to other disposal methods.
 Furthermore, most model programs are
 part of a more comprehensive waste
                •"''""  5
 reduction program.       *
     Doing a basic waste audit before
 beginning your program Will help you
 gain an understanding of^what is in
                      I
 your waste stream. This baseline
 information also serves as a marker for
               '   •  \r    •
             measuring diversion rate
             and change ib spending.
           Depending on the
          composition of y6ur waste
         stream, the best method of
      food discard recovery may be a
                           ?-
     combination of methods, i
                .     •       i
      Involving employees in the
 beginning and continuation of your
 program, and training everybody well in
 how and why to participate have also
                           I
 proven to be key elements in a *
 successful program. As more people
                            ?-
 are trained and interested in a prdgram,
                            •'4
 and feel ownership of it, the moreilikely
 they will be to collect food discardl
with little contamination at a high '
 recovery rate. This will ensure you have
a high-quality, high-value product. \
Adding food discard recovery       1
responsibilities to employee job     i
descriptions will help show that you are
serious about creating a strong  '•''".]
program.                         f
                              •I
     QWill beginning a food
     composting program cost much?
A     Start-up costs are typically low. For
     example. Shop Rite Supermarkets
in New Jersey had only to pay for the
rental of extra dumpsters and for the
additional organics pick-up. If you
choose to compost on-site with special
equipment, costs can be
higher. Your current equipment, plans
for your composting program, and
available space will all determine your
start-up costs.

     QHow can I run a cost-effective
     program?
A     How cost effective your program is
     mainly depends on the difference
between your current hauling and
tipping costs and those of the program
you decide to implement. For
composting, fees are usually significantly
less than trash fees. You may also be
able to sell finished compost. Food
banks and Tenderers usually provide free
pick-up, allowing programs to avoid
100% of their trash costs.
     Qlf I collect organics for
     composting or animal feed, am I
destined to live with vectors and foul
odors?
A     No. Most businesses that collect
     kitchen and table scraps avoid
these problems by keeping organics in
covered containers. Many refrigerate
containers until pick-up. A Waste
Specialist at Fletcher Allen Health Care,
where containers are picked up daily,
says that they avoid vector and odor
problems by keeping their containers
clean and their organics "moving."

    QAre composting and providing
    animal feed viable options for
urban businesses?
A    Yes. Commercial composting
    facilities in or near cities will take
your food discards. Farmers are close
enough to many urban areas that they
will pick up from your business.
Wholesalers and retailers throughout
San Francisco participate in a food
discard recovery program which
includes providing food for cattle.

-------

                -Setters Reap  Benefits

III
       llection and
       	lisa
  |ggs
ffiUDEK'l'li'tf
	Kopiposting,Shop
     "ii!,; 3	ijjjf
      {Kiejf s in New Jersey
      iffe of $90 per ton in
      Sand spend an
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     ef otf-site. This
           gsof$57

          jpvery rates, you
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 if pIKS frequently, or use
          •star the same
 I to the needy
ft Frand|co Food Bank
    '"''tons of edible
   JilHW
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   JW!|UL
 IS It to local service

        the food as

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                              IBIIIK
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                             hi1'IV r1'1 ''i' '"'''' ' liir ' !f
                                 Help your community meet
                                 local and state waste
                                 reduction goals
                                     In 1996 the Del Mar
                                 Fairgrounds in Del Mar, California,
                                 diverted 85% of its waste stream,
                                 including more than 38 tons of
                                 food discards. This helped the
                                 town of Del Mar meet diversion
                                 goals set by the 1989 California
                                 Waste Management Law.

                                 Sustain local industries and jobs
                                     Food discard generators
                                 typically do not need to hire
                                 anybody new to run food
                                 recovery programs.  However, by
                                 recovering  food discards for end
                                 users, they  can help sustain local
                                 industries and jobs. Composting
                                 facilities,for example, employ four
                                 times more people on a per-ton
                                 basis than landfills.5
                                     The Intervale Foundation, a
                                 non-profit organization in
                                 Vermont, employs five people full
                                 time at its composting site in
                                 Burlington.
                                                                                     Create an improved public
                                                                                     image for your business
                                                                                         Customers at Larry's Markets
                                                                                     in Washington are proud to shop
                                                                                     at a store with a strong
                                                                                     composting program.
                                                                  Notes
                                                                  1 Adapted from the U.S.
                                                                   Environmental Protection Agency,
                                                                   Measuring Recycling: A Guide for
                                                                   State and Local Governments, 1997,
                                                                   page 11.	
                                                                  2 Kantor L.S., Lipton K., Manchester A.,
                                                                   and Oliveira V., Estimating and
                                                                   Addressing America's Food Losses.
                                                                 	'!#£M,TS9?jpage 8:Advance release
                                                                   of same article in FoodReview, Vol. 20,
                                                                 •' No.1,Jan.-Apr,1997.
                                                                  3 Kantor L.S., Lipton K., Manchester A.,
                                                                   arid Oliveira V, 1997, page 4,
                                                                  4 U.S. Environmental Protection
                                                                   Agency, Characterization of Municipal
                                                                 '-'-- Solid Waste in the United States, 1996
                                                                 II,,, '.fe^te l??7,pp:5-6.	
                                                                 	s "Jobs'Sustained'per i'ob.dbOTPy	'."'.	
                                                                   Handled at Various Operations,"
                                                                   Institute for Local Self-Reliance,
                                                                   Washington, D.C., 1997.

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United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Solid Waste and
Emergency Response
(5306W)
EPA-530-F-98-023a
September 1998
www. epa. gov/osw
 Del  Mar  Fairgrounds
 Del  Mar, California
75% Recovery of Food Discards
   In 1996 Del Mar Fairgrounds, a 375-acre site, diverted 38 tons, or
   approximately 75% of its food discards from landfill. The fairgrounds
   achieved this through a comprehensive waste reduction program which includes:
   off-site composting  of food from its annual 20-day fair (1996 attendance 1,018,659);
   vermicomposting of food from its Satellite Wagering Facility; and sending used cooking oil
   to a rendering company.
Program Description

   Del Mar Fairgrounds' efforts to get to "zero
   waste or darn close" were partially spurred
by a 1989 California Waste Management La.w
requiring 50% diversion of solid waste from
landfills. Most of the fairgrounds'
compostables come from vendors at the
 annual fair who are contractually required to
  participate in the waste reduction program.
  This includes using paper products instead
   of polystyrene and recycling cardboard
    and beverage containers. Fairgrounds
    staff may fine vendors for non-
    compliance.
        For off-site composting, Del Mar
    staff provide food vendors with unlined,
    covered 90-gallon plastic carts to collect
    food discards. Staff daily haul the
    containers on flat-bed trucks to Solana
     Recyclers,a local composting  company
      with whom the fairgrounds has had a
      long-term relationship. Solana
       designates a spot next to a partially
       completed windrow where Del Mar
        staff unload compostables. Solana
        staff then cover new material with
         partially completed compost. This
         acts as a biofilter to keep odor to
          a minimum.  Solana operates four
          sites on three farms; finished
         compost is used as fertilizer on
             the fields. Solana can also accept paper
             products, so paper contamination is not a
             problem. Fairgrounds staff pull other
             contaminants out of the food discard
             containers; occasionally Solana staff need to
             remove some additional contaminants.
                At the Satellite Wagering Facility, patrons
             gather to bet on horse races which they
             watch on satellite television. From mid-
             September through mid-July, approximately
             2,500 people per day, six days a week attend.
             Attendance can be as high as 5,000 for the
             Kentucky Derby and other big races.
                Since 1997, fruit and vegetable scraps
             from the facility's kitchen have been
             vermicomposted on the racetrack's infield
             farm. Vermicomposting is done byeisneola
               Contact:
                sa
                an^ssions Coordinator
              gUWar Fairgrounds  ^
              ^Snfjjjistrict Agricultural Association
               Concessions Department
                  Box 2668
               3e!Mar,CA 92014
                   792-4218 fax:(619)792-4236

              tCcimpost Program Manager
               SojanaTtecyclers
                   , ElCamino Real
               Encinitas,CA 92024
                '6QT436-7986

-------
(etlda worms in a wood framed box,
which stts directly on the ground. Once
collected from the wagering facility,
   which can provide an almost year-
    round supply of worm food, scraps
     sit for a few days in a container.
      Staff then feed this partially
       decomposed food to the worms.
       Fairgrounds staff feed and water
the worms once a day. A water dripline
for use during dry periods runs through
the box. The box is covered with
cardboard and a shade cloth. The
finished worm compost, or castings, is
used as fertilizer on the fairgrounds.
From January through August 1997,
over 3 tons of food discards were
vermicomposted.
     Cooking oil is collected for
rendering. Darling international, a
rendering company, provides covered
barrels for the oil and collects them
from the grounds, at no cost, as needed.
Vendor participation in this effort is also
contractually required.
     In total in 1996, the fairgrounds
recycled, including composted, 5,294
tons of materials; it sent 929 tons of
trash to the landfill.
Costs/Benefits

   The fairgrounds did not buy any new
   equipment for the off-site
composting program and had no start-
up costs.
    Start-up costs for vermicomposting
were under $500, including the cost of
25 pounds of worms and collection
containers. Soon fairgrounds staff will
need to build an additional worm box.
    Year-round recycling, including
composting, for the fairgrounds and
wagering facility cost about $70,000 in
labor, excluding labor for horse races.
Transportation costs $540 per year. The
fairgrounds currently pays $40-47 per
ton for tipping trash, although costs
have been as high as $70 per ton.
Compost site tipping fees are $17 per
                                   ton. In 1996, total composting costs,
                                   including labor and transportation,
                                   were approximately $24 per ton.
                                        In 1996 the fairgrounds saved over
                                   $232,900 in landfill costs through its
                                   waste reduction program. It earned
                                   over $15,000 in revenue through
                                   aluminum, glass, and cardboard
                                   recycling.
                                        Del Mar staff have the satisfaction
                                   of running an environmentally
                                   responsible fair.


                                   Tips for Replication
                                   •   Mandate participation by all
                                   vendors and staff.
                                   •   Develop good working
                                    relationships with an established
                                    company.
                     Program Summary, 1996
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                                      'sitewindrow,cQrnpostihg;bn-si'te,:" '''"'""',;' ":i'
                 iHi^HHKIHSisiSiiil

   fflaterialscollectecl	"''"""	Pre-cori'sumef discard's, paper'plates, cups,    'if
  IliliiiL.'ilillllilhlllailillljIIIIMI.iillilliliillllll	!!||ll!l!!l|!!!ll!!!!illllll!!!!l!lll|||lll|;|l|!l!ll|l|llllllllis                                                          m
                                     napkins, paper towels; vegetable and 	  . -^
                                        ^^^coolon^ofl''^"'"*]''	"	""""""''""~~'"I i
                                                                        ""'"'!; i
                                                  	li^'.mik.1'.'!...	^.^"I'llib.^.'	.i/.."".";..	I'ln
Part or comprenensive waste        res
       	1	i	1	1	Ill	1,	 7	Ill	Ill	llHiUil	Ill	HUllH^^	Ill
^[^^"^^g	jffsyi	^SiT^K'^^o'ftsTecycTecC	k	"!!	'	'l|
          •!——-g- g5n5^rtSair?YT~~~5norwT!isWia1£ed)11
           scards recovered (tPY)   38 tons
   i pood discards recovered (%j       75% (estimated)       	|
   llrff', U;' i It > .31IIIHIEII	WjliiljW    	Jill	MKIlllllW   	liniJIIIIIJ^fl'I'lfi'llpl	HHfilllllll^	IWi!!11!;	^K'"'..''.!!:!!'!^^'!1!":"	'v,111''1'!	:"iM;>y ''^ ''rKi!'"!""!.'! ,|l,	i,i	/,,""} t
   	=	|a| waste recovered 1%)  ". 	            '       '                "

   I Average cpitipostincj costs	$24 per ton
   lFii!i:!li!!r!ig|^                                               	i,ic,i1 ,ir"tt".I!,	::,»'..i!,,!1: ,i
    11,'{hauling and tipping fees)
    nmwUuBMIBMiiiWCMBWtH	!	B	"!"	'	>"!!"!!	W|l"1	: ""fl'1'1	•'" •'	'"''	- "|l"":"11'	''' ' '•	"'"'
    lyerajtalbjIedJanM
    ^el savings	'"	'	  	517-23 per" ton                   ,  , •     is
    	' fflaM3!iHiiffiSii^^
                                                                                                             .iii'ffunri,	!|
                                           * A dedicated employee is one whose primary responsibility is working with the food discard program.
                                           TPY = tons per year

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United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
                             Solid Waste and
                             Emergency Response
                             (5306W)
EPA-530-F-98-023b
September 1998
www.epa.gov/osw
 Fletcher  Allen
 Health  Care
 Burlington, Vermont
90% Recovery of Preconsumer Food Discards
    The Medical Center Hospital of Vermont (MCHV) Campus of Fletcher
    Allen Health Care delivers approximately 90% of its food preparation
    scraps and steam table leftovers to an off-site composting facility. The hospital also
    donates produce to a food bank and sends old grease to a rendering facility. Its food discard
    recovery program allows Fletcher Allen to save approximately $1,400 per year in landfill
    hauling and tipping fees and to support a local farm.
Program Description

   :itchen staff at the MCHV Campus of
   Fletcher Allen Health Care prepare 4,000
meals a day for patients and cafeteria patrons
at the 500-bed facility. Kitchen staff place
food preparation discards and leftovers from
cafeteria steam tables into 64-gallon toters
 every Monday through Friday. Leftovers
  from plates are not collected because
  separating out post-consumer compostables
   from individual patient rooms is difficult,
    and because staff need to be extra careful
     about keeping sanitary conditions in this
     hospital setting.
        Hospital housekeeping staff bring
    full toters to an organic farm run by the
    Intervale Foundation where discards are
    windrow composted. Intervale is a
     non-profit organization that runs many
     programs including the Intervale
      Composting Project, a partnership
      between Intervale and the Chittenden
      (VT)  Solid Waste District, with
       Intervale the managing partner. The
        project accepts food scraps from
        hundreds of large and small
        businesses in addition to  horse
         manure from a farm, leaves, and
         yard trimmings. Because the
         project is located near residential
         communities, Intervale staff only
                                         turn windrows when the wind is blowing away
                                         from more populated areas. The material takes
                                         about 10 months to compost It is then
                                         screened to remove large pieces and used on
                                         Intervale farms. It is also sold to area businesses
                                         and gardeners and through mail order.
                                             During the year it took Intervale to
                                         receive a permit to accept commercial
                                         discards, hospital staff were trained in
                                         separation of compostable items as well as in
                                         proper storage and handling procedures.
                                         Staff were already separating out recyclables
                                         to send to the hospital's recycling facility
                                         located in a nearby town. Separating food
                                         discards was not a  major change in their daily
                                         routine. All new staff are trained in separating
                                           Contacts:
                                             ___jmj§ntal Health
                                             £oord'inator
                                             fjSo£Community Health Improvement
                                             ~~_  '.fen Health Care
                                            xjtfffnunity Health Improvement
                                             fic Campus, Arnold 4410
                                             ^^  _,VT 05401
                                             Hp56-2399 fax:(802)656-5985
                                               : hshaner@aol.com
                                           /Vaste Team Leader
                                          !S|JgpiAllen Health Care
                                            ULColchester Avenue
                                                    T 05401
                                              feS6-4886  fax:(802)656-2790


-------
recyclabtes, including compostables.
    The hospital housekeeping staff's
waste team makes daily trips to the
recycling facility in a 19-foot box truck;
trips to the Intervale farm, about 1 mile
off the route, were added when
Fletcher Allen began composting. The
truck is standard dock height, making it
       easy for staff to wheel heavy
       toters on and off. After
       emptying toters, the waste
        team disinfects them at the
      recycling facility with a hospital
     grade disinfectant. Fletcher Allen
      has had no odor or vector
   problems. The hospital's Waste
Specialist attributes this to "keeping
our compost moving," and to cleaning
the toters daily.
    Kitchen staff collect grease in
containers, which are emptied into a
180-gallon tank. Baker Commodities, a
rendering company, picks up the tank
at no cost to Fletcher Allen, and sends
It to one of its facilities for processing.
    The hospital donates fruit and
vegetables to a local food bank.

Costs/Benefits
    Start-up costs were minimal. In 1997,
    Fletcher Allen paid per-ton tip fees
of $25 at the compost facility plus
approximately $57 per ton in labor,
transportation, and other related costs.
Trash hauling and landfill tipping cost
the hospital $98 per ton.
    Fletcher Allen buys $1,000 of
produce wholesale per month from the
farm, allowing patients to eat locally
grown, pesticide-free produce. Once a
week, employees can buy organically
grown produce from a farm cart
brought to the hospital.
    The program provides good
public relations in the community and
fits in with the hospital's waste
reduction policy. As one of 6,000
hospitals in the United States, which in
total produce one to two percent of
the country's solid waste, Fletcher
Allen Health Care staff believe
composting to be part of the
hospital's mission to provide for the
health of the community.
                                 Tips for Replication

                                 •    Know what's going on at your
                                 facility before you begin any program.
                                 Calculate your baseline operation in
                                 tons and costs. If you don't measure
                                 your success, the program will be
                                 invisible.
                                 •    Look for existing infrastructure or
                                 processes within the system on which
                                 to piggyback your program. This will
                                 make program costs small  add-ons
                                 rather than whole new costs.
                                 •    Train food service workers well,
                                 and well ahead of program
                                  implementation.
                                 •    Place signs on containers.
                                 •    Assign program responsibility to
                                  somebody. To ensure program success,
                                  one person needs to oversee it.
                 llllll'llll
                                                       IB n in nil ill giiui riiniiiijLljiiHBiii B A
 S
 ft!
                Program Summary, 1997
S'tSector                          'HosP'tal
*  Average number of meals prepared 4,000 meals per day
te ...... -Start d_ate ""  ...... . ,  ',',' ." ......     1993
                            •       Q 5
                                                                    i!
s :  Methods
 & Materials collected .
   Part of comprehensive waste      Yes
                              Off-site windrow composting; rendering;      "' s
                               donations                              B |=
                              Kitchen scraps; cooking oil; preconsumer       |
                               leftovers                               * 1
                                                                  '   l§
         ction program?
                                   1,431 tons (estimated)
  Ifqod dSscardslelerated (TPV)    100  tons (estimated)
taaAe recmred (TPY
                                               1                       J»
                                                                   Hill*
                                                       I  i     111 h I hl f "fi ''Wlllli j>
                                             i ni	i	i	i	«pi	in	inr
                                    ,
                                    90 tons
                  oovired (%T ......  "9TD% (estimated)
                                '"   468 tons
                                    33%" ^estimated)
                                      i1 ill' ..... "  '  ' ........
                                 "   $82 per ton
                          hauling   $^98' per' ton
    Net savings
    * A dedicated employee is one whose primary responsibility is working with the food discard program.
    TRY = tons per year

-------
 United States
 Environmental Protection
 Agency
Solid Waste and
Emergency Response
(5306W)
                                                          EPA-530-F-98-023c
                                                          September 1998
                                                          www. epa.gov/osw
 Frost  Valley  Y1VICA
'Claryville, New York
 100% Recovery of Food Discards
     Using a static aerobic composting system, this 6,000-acre residential
     educational and recreational facility in the Catskill Mountains
     composts 100% of the food discards from its kitchen and dining room. From 1990,
     when Frost Valley began its comprehensive waste reduction program, to 1997, the facility
     reduced its total solid waste by 53% (by weight). Through food recovery. Frost Valley now
     realizes a net savings of $5,200 annually and provides a unique educational opportunity to
     thousands of visitors per year.
Program Description
F
   rost Valley runs environmental education
   programs and a summer camp, as well as
hosts conferences throughout the year. About
30,000 people per year stay at this facility for
periods of one to seven nights. During the
 summer when camp is in session, the kitchen
  serves 800 people a total of approximately
   2,400 meals daily.
       In the late 1980s, as waste disposal
    costs steadily rose, Frost Valley sought
     alternatives to landfilling its waste.
     When a waste assessment found food
     to be the greatest contributor to the
    waste stream, Frost Valley decided to
    implement a composting program.
       Kitchen staff put all food preparation
     scraps, meat, bones, and paper towels
     in unlined 30-gallon plastic cans in the
      kitchen. Guests deposit their leftovers
      in an unlined can in the dining room.
       Staff stationed in the dining room
       during meals educate guests and
        help them with food recovery
        procedures.
              Staff bring filled cans to a
          refrigerated room adjacent to the
          dining hall. When they have
          collected approximately 30 cans,
          they empty the cans into a
            Knight standard feed mixer, which holds up to
            6 tons of material. Staff wash cans after each
            use. During the summer with camp in session,
            it takes 3-4 days to amass one mixer load of
            material; during the fall and winter it takes 2
            to 2 1/2 weeks.
                In addition to food, Frost Valley YMCA
            composts anything organic, including yard
            trimmings and lumber. Large items such as
            lumber are put in a hydraulic grinder and
            shredded before being added to the mixer.
                Staff weigh food and other material going
            into the mixer and then add an equal amount
            of wood chips as a bulking agent. The wood
            chips add carbon, creating a proper
            carbon/nitrogen ratio.  After mixing, materials
            are piled in a holding bay in the facility's
            Resource Management Center. Wood chips
            piled around six-inch PVC perforated pipes
            line the bottom of the bay. On top of that,
            staff layer the mixer contents and wood chips.
                                             pntact:   .,
                                            4§S°ciate Executive Director for Programs
                                            g2styalley YMCA
                                            2000 Frost Valley Road
                                            P!aryvilIe,NY 12725
                                                985-2291
                                                    5-0056

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Fans attached to the pipes cool the
piles and add oxygen.
    Materials stay in these piles for
approximately 13 weeks until the
volume, moisture, and temperature
levels have all dropped. Staff then use a
front-end loader to put material in a
          j   modified trommel grain
       <*t   separator, which
            separates out larger
           material that has not
          completely broken down.
       Material that has gone through
      the separator is windrow
composted for 13-15 weeks.
    Frost Valley has no contamination
or odor problems. Wood chips control
odor, and because the composter and
bays are Inside, there are no vector
problems.

Costs/Benefits
    Frost Valley raised $250,000 for
    composting equipment and site,
educational facilities and equipment,
and development before beginning the
 project. One of the greatest program
 costs was building the attached
 classroom, greenhouse, and gardens
 used to share the program with the
 thousands of students and families that
 visit Frost Valley every year. Other costs
 associated with the program include
 electricity, fuel, and miscellaneous
operating costs. This totaled
approximately $500 in FY97.
    In 1997, as a result of food
recovery, Frost Valley avoided
approximately $9,700 in waste disposal
costs. It also derives revenue from the
sale of recycled materials such as
cardboard. Since implementation of its
waste reduction program, including
composting, Frost Valley  has reduced
the number of trips to the landfill to
empty the dumpster from 16 to 10 per
year. In addition, composting is
continuously  used as an  educational
program. The educational value of this
program is hard to measure in dollars.
Because  it draws visitors to the facility, it
has been very successful in generating
additional dollars for other
environmentally related  projects on the
                property such as composting toilets
                and wood chip technology for heating
                buildings. In addition, as guests learn
                more about the project and its benefits,
                they become more interested and
                invested in composting as a method of
                handling food discards.
                    Landscaping projects and an on-
                site green house and organic garden
                demonstrate uses of finished compost.


                Tips for  Replication
                •    Make it easy for guests to
                understand your program and its value.
                Although it initially cost more to build
                the classroom, this educational space is
                an important component of
                composting at Frost Valley.
                      Program Summary, 1997
    Sector
    Numbe'rof'mealsperyear'11"	
           	ResTaehtfal education
           ""?85i50S (estimated)
    Start date
    • Part of "comprehensive waste      Yes
   1,1 li'l" >!' nl||'L|i| ;il\'jj;'il:'j;^''yiii|jjli''W    In.i' in., ..i1,.*1'.!!!11!' .y,	:r	I'l'.'.....'!.!':.™!!.. II .''.III11,.	Ill	,	„! .m.|..|;	llil,inl.|.||ilil	'
      reduction program?
     .]ll!l:	Alpin	..run;	iirpiliRiirBA    	|I|..|IB.|.»III|..IH	IT	""Trilir	Trl'.i.iMpMT^lb	
                               	'	8:5	,g
                                    Static aerobic piles          ^              !l;|
                               	'	!|B	ll^r'^™n^16^^ohsumer'fooit}Sls«rds;ya'r'(3   ""fe;
                                         flings; lumber
         vrameiralejr
                                    Slflonslesfimated)
         Cirds generated (TPY)
     Results:1
     f-ood and other organic
        liscards recover
                    es'B mated)
(TPY)
  i   Food discards recovered {%)
  filElotaTwaste'recoverecil' (f PYl	
             luU%
            "TSfiTons (estlrhated)
    iHverage composting costs'       '" $56'per ton
     Average avoided landfill hauling	$121	per tori	
                                     $6S per ton
     •This part-time employee works with both on-site composting and trash management.
     *» Net savings do not reflect the cost of the composting machine, site, and classroom. Frost Valley reports
     that these costs have been more than offset via fees paid by visitors.
     TPY = tons per year

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United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Solid Waste and
Emergency Response
(5306W)
EPA-530-F-98-023d
September 1938
www.epa.gov/osw
Green  Workplace
Program
Government of Ontario
70% Recovery of Food Discards
     In 1991, the Government of Ontario, Canada, created the Green
     Workplace Program (GWP). The GWP facilitates waste reduction, resource
     conservation, and environmentally responsible purchasing in provincial facilities. An
     integral part of the GWP's waste reduction programs, composting diverted approximately
     1,500 metric tons (1,650 U.S. tons) of food discards from landfills in FY96. From all its
     composting programs combined (in-vessel, on-site, and off-site), the Government of Ontario
     avoided C$150,000 in trash disposal costs in FY96. Of this avoided cost, C$8,580 was from
     its in-vessel program.
Program Description

     When audits showed that food and wet
     waste constituted up to 70% of the
waste stream of institutional facilities, the
GWP began nine projects aimed at
 developing composting expertise and
  demonstrating on-site composting
   systems. These sites employ a variety of
    compost methods, including windrow,
     aerated static pile, and large scale
     vermiculture. In total, the sites handle
     225 kg (496 Ibs.) to 2,750 kg (6,064 Ibs.)
    of food and other organic material each
    week.  Based on the success of these first
     projects, GWP has expanded
     composting to 27 government facilities.
       The Ontario Government set up a
      Greening Demonstration Fund to
      purchase and test environmental
       technologies. Through this fund,
       GWP purchased an in-vessel
        composting unit made by Wright
        Environmental Inc., an Ontario
         company. Located on the grounds
          of the Ontario Science Center, this
          in-vessel system accepts food
          discards (including dairy, meat,
             and fish) from seven different government
             facilities. A special building, accessible to
             visitors, houses the composter.
                Diners in four correctional facilities and
             three government office buildings and
             restaurants put their food discards into "food
             only" containers. Kitchen staff refrigerate this
             food, along with food preparation scraps in
             specially marked 65-gallon containers. On
             semi-weekly collection days, kitchen staff
             wheel containers to the loading dock for pick-
             up. In a unique arrangement, staff and clients
             from a local detention center collect and
             transport the discards to the composter.
                At the in-vessel site, detention center
             clients add food discards and bulking agent
             (such as wood chips and paper towels) to the
             mixer in appropriate proportions. Material
             spends 24 to 30 days moving through the
                 rmger
                _ jr-ten Workplace Program
                gtaWc^Realty Corporation
                ggayLStreet, 15th floor
                35Qnto, Ontario MSG 2E5, Canada
                    5-7541

-------
vessel. It is then screened and stored in
an on-site container which, when full, is
taken and emptied at a municipal
windrow site. Material is windrowed
and cured for three to four weeks.
    When the project began, staff from
Wright Environmental trained Ministry
of Correctional Services employees to
run the composting machine. They also
trained detention center clients in
proper handling and transportation
procedures. GWP staff provide training
to kitchen and other building
employees on how to prepare food
discards for composting.
    The composter is also being used
to test the viability of starting
residential and commercial food discard
collection programs.
Costs/Benefits
Note: all cost figures are in Canadian
dollars, Alt tons are metric tons.
"••he machine cost $180,000, and costs
 I $50 per ton to run. In FY96,
transportation to the Ontario Science
Center cost approximately $49 per ton;
              landfill hauling and
                tipping costs were
                $138 per ton. In
             FY96,the in-vessel unit
      composted 220 tons of food
  discards, avoiding $8,580 in waste
disposal costs.        ;._
     Based on landfill costs and
participating facilities at the time of
                                       purchase in 1992, GWP projected a 4.6-
                                       year pay-back period on the composter.
                                       Since 1992, both transportation and
                                       landfill costs have gone up, with
                                       transportation costs increasing more
                                       than landfill costs. In addition, in early
                                       1997, a facility that had contributed 2
                                       tons per day to the compost stream
                                       stopped preparing food on-site and
                                       discontinued participation in the
                                       program. In late 1997, however, another
                                       facility will join, adding 4-10 tons per
                                       week. In fall 1997, GWP is predicting a
                                       6-year pay-back period. As more
                                       material is diverted from landfills and
                                       composted, the in-vessel unit becomes
                                       more cost-effective.
                                           The Toronto Parks Department
                                       saves  money by using compost instead
                                       of buying soil, peat moss, mulch and
                                       fertilizer to maintain lawns and gardens.
    Tips for Replication
    •   Know how much and what type of
    food discards are generated at your
    facility. Determine your current food
    discard collection and disposal costs.
    •   Calculate how much the preferred
    composting system will cost (aim for a
    pay-back period of five years or less).
    •   Ensure that you have sufficient
    budget to cover system purchase and
    maintenance.
    •   Consider accepting food discards
    from  many sites to increase program
    cost-effectiveness.
    •   Train staff to use the composting
    method correctly.
    •   Publicize your program; publish
    results.
                                              In-Vessel Composter Program Summary, FY96
                                                                                                                •	I 8

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United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Solid Waste and
Emergency Response
(5306W)
EPA-530-F-98-023e
September 1998
www.epa.gov/osw
Larry's  Markets
Seattle, Washington
90% Recovery of Food and Floral Discards
    Larry's Markets recovers approximately 870 tons oforganics annually
    through its off-site composting and rendering programs.  Stores also donate
    canned goods to local charities. The chain realizes a net savings of $40-$55 per ton of
    material recovered (about $41,000 per year).
Program Description

  n 1991, the head of the Environmental
  Affairs Program at this Seattle-based
grocery chain performed an audit and found
organics to be the largest part by volume of
its waste stream. In order to reduce costs
and expand its efforts towards total
environmental responsibility, Larry's Markets
 began using energy-efficient lighting and
  heating and cooling systems, donating
   canned goods, and recycling materials
    including food and floral discards for
    composting.
        As part of Larry's Markets'waste
     reduction efforts, a project team
    including management from all five
    stores worked to create a food recovery
    program that would fit into employee
    daily activities. Recycling, including
     composting, is now part of every
      employee's job description. In the
      produce department, staff put
       unsaleable produce and trimmings
       in unlined plastic tubs, which they
        wash periodically. The tubs sit on
        the bottom level of the cart staff
         use to stock produce. When tubs
         are full, staff put them on a
          central cart which holds eight
          tubs. They then bring full
          central carts outside and dump
          them into 1 1/2-cubic-yard
             containers. These containers used to serve
             as garbage dumpsters; now stores keep their
             garbage in compactors until it is picked up,
             less than once a week. Previously, garbage
             had been picked up twice a week.
                At the beginning, hauling compostables
             from stores was problematic. The hauling
             company experimented with various trucks
             and containers, but due to the weight of wet
             organics, trucks often reached their hauling
             weight limit before they had been to every
             store. This problem was solved by splitting
             the pick-up route between two trucks. In
             1995, Larry's Markets contracted with two
             additional companies that haul organics and
             run composting sites. These companies pick
             up from stores near their sites. With three
             haulers picking up compostables, no hauler
             has a problem with weight limits. The
             discards are composted with yard trimmings,
             soil, and other organics to produce topsoil.
             Closing the loop, Larry's Markets uses the
             topsoil in its landscaping.
                    jriental Affairs, Planning and
                   (jgnation Services
                  's Markets
                  20th Street, NE.
                 levueWA 98005
                36} 153-503 1 ext. 403

-------
    Odors in the summer were a
problem at first until the stores moved
to more frequent pick-up of their
compostables. Now, they are picked
up two or three times a week from
each store. Larry's Markets has had no
vector problems.
    The chain sends meat and fish
bones, fat, and skin to a rendering
facility. Staff in the meat and fish
departments store trimmings in tubs in
a 40*F cooler. Once a week Darling
Delaware Company empties these tubs.
Depending on the current market,
Larry's Markets pays either nothing or
1 $/pound for this service.
    Each store provides donations to
a church or food bank that picks up
non-perishables approximately once a
week.

Costs/Benefits
   Start-up costs were minimal. Two
   hundred dollars bought extra
plastic tubs; stores use their existing
dumpsters to collect compostable
material.
    Notwithstanding a 34% rise in
disposal costs, in 1993, Larry's Markets
avoided over $20,000 in hauling and
tipping fees, approximately 25% of its
waste removal budget. In 1995, net
savings through composting were
        approximately $35,000.
          Depending on the store  and
          hauler, stores pay $105-
      $110 per ton in trash hauling
     and tipping fees, and $55-$65  per
    ton in food discard hauling and
tipping fees, thus saving $40-$55 per
ton composted.
     Employees are proud of their
accomplishments in helping the stores
become environmentally and socially
responsible. Customers are aware and
appreciative of the efforts.
Tips for Replication
•   Know the composition of your
waste stream. This will help create the
most effective diversion scheme for
your business.
•   Identify community resources.
Larry's worked with the King County
Solid Waste Division and with the
Clean Washington Center, which
provided help in assembling routes,
contracting with its initial hauler, and
negotiating with one yard trimmings
composter to take food discards.
•    Develop a good working
relationship with government officials.
The Washington State Department of
Ecology helped with regulatory issues.
                                      »   Consider creative alternatives to
                                      meeting both your needs and the
                                      needs of the companies with which
                                      you work.
                                      •   Make a commitment to the
                                      environment.
                                      •   Build awareness of the program's
                                      value at all levels of the company.
                                      •   Be prepared to take at least six
                                      months to change worker habits and
                                      to effectively communicate the
                                      benefits of an organic discard recovery
                                      program. After the initial six months,
                                      continuing, though less intensive,
                                      training is needed to reinforce the
                                      message, and to teach company
                                      practice to new employees.
 II
                     Program Summary, 1995
- • Retail Sales per year
•" Start date
   Dedicated Employees*
J	Method '
fill ill  !    i   'l'ii
HI Materials collected
f Hi'inT~ "   ii ii MM ~v r  i
I  Part of comprehensive waste
" "  reduction program?
*  Total waste generated (TPY)
l*hjl   IJ J  ' j I   I  J   ,1   ",
;  Food, floral, waxed cardboard
1 (  discards generated (TPY)
iHIII IK!                           t

 |. RESULTS:
 i  Food, floral, waxed cardboard
 "  discards recovered (TPY)
 I Food, floral, waxed cardboard
 ifTdiscards recovered (%)
 If, Total waste recovered
 in	
                                  Supermarket
                                  B i  w m«™ *    IIT
                                  $100 million total, 5 stores
                                  1991
                                  |ii  .<*ti i              i

                                  1 Off-site windrow composting; rendering;
                                  '4* donations
                                  Produce and floral trimmings and spoils,
                                  • waxed cardboard; meat and fish discards;
                                  " duFof-date canned goods
                                  Yes
                                  3,000 "tons, 5 stores
                                  970 tons (estimated)
                                  870 tons: 750 to compost; 120 to rendering
                                    (estimated)
                                 "90%""'

                                  64%
  i Average composting costs         $55-65 per ton
   Average avoided landfill hauling   $105-$110 per ton
   i and tipping fees
   !• i I III' iL| I MI ii pin illinium  piniinw i  n	 iiniifflpiifl *m w s*i inwjiipmn IB ^ »   n
     et savings                     $40-55 per ton
                                                                        li 1

                                                                         I
                                                                         t
                                                                       in*

                                                                       n 4
                                          » A dedicated employee is one whose primary responsibility is working with the food discard program
                                          TPY = tons per year

-------
United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Solid Waste and
Emergency Response
(5306W)
EPA-530-F-98-023f
September 1998
www.epa.gov/osw
Middlebury  College
Middlebury, Vermont
75% Recovery of Food Discards
    Students  and  employees  at Middlebury  College collected
    approximately 288 tons of food discards for on-campus composting in 1996.
    This represented approximately 75% of the colleges total food discards. As a result of its
    composting program,Middlebury avoids approximately $137 per ton in landfill hauling and
    tipping fees. In 1996, this led to a net savings of over $27,000.
Program Description

   After a waste assessment found food to be
   the heaviest component of the waste
stream, Facilities Management staff at
Middlebury College (student population
2,000) decided to implement a pilot
composting program to divert food discards.
 The pilot was successful and the composting
  program now involves all five dining halls,
   three kitchens, and three snack bars.
    Although Middlebury began its program
     by sending material off-site for
     composting, in 1996, due to price
     changes in both trash and composting
     fees, the College began composting on-
     site instead.
       The kitchens prepare between 3,400
     and 3,600 meals  per day year-round. In
     each dining hall, dish room staff put
      food preparation discards as well as
      post-consumer leftovers  into small
      "food only" trash cans on wheels.
       College Dining Services and General
       Services staff empty these, along
        with waxed cardboard and pre- and
         post-consumer discards collected
         from the snack bars into a
          compactor outside one of the
           kitchens.  Staff empty the
           compactor twice a month and
          take discards to on-site aerated
             static piles for composting. The College is
             seeking funding for an in-vessel composter.
                 Middlebury has also had success
             collecting food discards at special events. In
             the spring of 1997, about 4,000 people
             attended a graduation picnic at which food
             discards were collected and later com posted.
             Picnickers brought all their discards to tables
             where Facilities Management staff sorted it
             into "recycle,""compost," and "trash" barrels.
                The recovery rate at the dining halls and
             kitchens is very high. It is lower at snack bars
             where customers bus and separate their own
             discards, and where many customers buy food
             to go.
                To help avoid contamination of
             compostable organics, Facilities Management
             staff notify dining services managers when
             contaminants such as plastic wrappings, metal
             wire from wooden crates, and metal rings
             from ice cream containers are found among
             the food discards. Managers are responsible
             for keeping food discard containers relatively
                 ntact:
               Ijnwronmerital Coordinator
                 vigeJjmLding
                i/liddfebury College
                )tiddlel>ury,vr 05753
               '{JP2H43-5043
              Ffax (802) 443-5753

-------
             M
contaminant free. The program does
accept a bit of contamination, as
compost is screened at the end. When
staff screen compost, they rent a
machine with a rotating mesh barrel.
The mesh lets small soil particles
through and captures larger
contaminants.
    The College used to have two
compactor containers. Due to odor
problems, however, one compactor was
removed and one of the satellite sites
stopped separating out compostables.
To mitigate odor from the remaining
compactor container, the College
installed a filter. In summer 1997 staff
painted it white so that it would not
absorb as much heat, thereby cutting
down on organic processes until the
             material is transported
               to the compost site.
               This reduced odor. In
                a continuing effort to
                 lessen the odor
                  problem, Facilities
        Management staff are working
to develop a system for daily collection
from the compactor container. This,
they believe, will completely eliminate
odor problems.
             Costs/Benefits
                  iddlebury College
                  composts an average
              of 24 tons of food
               discards per month. In
               1996, the cost per ton
               for composting,
                including tipping fees,
                trucking, labor, fuel,
                 and supplies was $42.
                 For recycling it was
             $145; for trash, $137. Asa
  result of its high food recovery rate,
  Middlebury realized net savings of
  $27,000.
Tips for Replication
•   Educate staff on how to compost
and why.
•   Keep people involved in the
program with an ongoing dialogue
between the Environmental
Coordinator and food service
employees.
•   Commit to solving problems rather
than saying "forget it" when problems
arise. Keep trying, even if the program
is not perfect at first. Let problems
serve as catalysts for improvement.
                    Program Summary, 1996

         	;""
                                                                         "-
                                                                          "
                                                                          * ?
                                                                    	jj	.»j;	-^111 |—
Ij^jr^rage.nMibrAei.Qf.meals prepared  3,400-3,600 meals per year total in three	„ 2.
li* nHlOilli '"!* 'IT'ini1' I1"!"1'']"! "KiiiMW     ii'" 'f'ilSi'l'i!1'!!1	"I'll' illV'ilfl'iir'iiinWii1! ii'1**'''!	t'liiBlW*111 i!i'!iii'i!'"''it'"' " Hi,:•;•'".,	'i.l':;.::;:."!1!!"!;!'!!.!!,.!!1;..!":'"1.1!1,!',!1!.!, '?•.•.I..IM, ,.,•:,•!!••	HW^Mv^'ll1;*!!! t/i
                                                                          ',! JO.
                                                                        	w -pi
                                                                        lii| Mpi'lil ;
  Start date
                                  ""'"t'S^f'offsite composting;' 1:9§6 on-site	"""'''':;	!"'): §
 !!; Dedicated Employees*
  Materials collected
                                   0
                                   On-slte windrow composting
                                   Kitchen scraps, pre- and post-consumer
                                 II
- Ill II
| part of comprehensive waste
S-T- reduction program?
Total waste generated (TPY)
an 1 il'ti iii • l 	 i"1 1 	 i1 "in 	 mi1 in "" " 	 i 	
. Food discards generated

1' RESULTS:
s Food discards recovered (TPY)
- Food discards recovered (%)
J Total waste recovered (TPY)
i Total waste recovered (%}
i food discards
Yes
1,1 33 tons '
384 tons (estimated)

288 tons
75% (estimated,)
725 tons
64%
, 	 ,. . ..||
fi
D-
	 '"" 	 " 	 fff
|||||||||||||||||l|||||l|||||||||||l|l||^
1
*
. , . 	 	 -J!
jl
  COSTS:
               ii                 i     i
  Average composting costs         $42 per ton
  Average avoided landfill hauling   $137 per ton
                                   $95 per ton
'	.Nlfsavings
  * A dedicated employee is one whose primary responsibility is working with the food discard program.
  TPY = tons per year

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United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Solid Waste and
Emergency Response
(5306W)
EPA-530-F-98-023g
September 1998
www.epa.gov/osw
 New  York  State
 Department of
 Correctional Services
 (DOCS),  New York
 90% Recovery of Food Discards
    In  1997, 47 of 70 correctional facilities in the New York State
    Department of Correctional Services (DOCS) composted at 30 sites, which accept
    from 1/2 to 4 tons of food discards a day. Participating facilities recover 90% of their food and
    other organic discards. Through composting, DOCS facilities realize a net savings of $564,200
    per year in avoided disposal costs.
 Program Description

  In 1989, a survey found that food scraps
  comprised 30 percent by weight of DOCS'
 waste stream. A desire to reduce disposal
 costs as well as comply with state waste
 reduction legislation led DOCS to begin its
 composting program. Participating facilities
 prepare approximately 125,000 meals daily
  for an average of 1,000 inmates per facility.
   Kitchen workers put food preparation
   discards in unlined plastic containers;
    inmates put leftovers in a container in
     the dining hall. Full containers are
     refrigerated until inmates take them to
     the composting sites three or four times
     a week.
       By refrigerating the discards, DOCS
     avoids odor problems. At the
     composting sites, discards are mixed
     with bulking material and windrow
      composted. Wood chips made from
      scrap wood produced on the premises
       comprise most of the bulking agent.
       Some programs also use yard debris
        from neighboring communities.
           Sites accept chicken bones and
         food containing meat, such as chili.
         Some covered windrows accept
          paper towels and other soiled
          paper; some of the bigger sites
          can handle waxed cardboard.
          Facilities with open windrows do
            not accept paper, as it often blows away,
            creating a litter problem.
                Other than attracting a few birds now
            and then, the facilities have no vector
            problems. To keep vectors to a minimum,
            DOCS keeps the temperature of the windrow
            piles at 145°F and mixes new food discards
            with a bulking agent immediately upon
            bringing them to the compost site.
                DOCS central office resource management
            staff prepared a training manual addressing
            issues such as bulking ratios, turning frequency,
            and legal aspects of composting programs. In
            addition, central office staff are on-site for the
            first few days of each composting program to
            train staff and trouble shoot.They also train
            new staff. Composting responsibilities are
            integrated into existing job descriptions. Staff
            at each site train inmates in composting
            procedures. Well-trained staff and inmates
            who are invested in the program keep
            contamination to a minimum.
             fResQUtce Management Director
               NY State Department of Correctional
                 7,
                 T Services
              lEastem Correctional Facility
              ;jToi Berme Rd
             gylpanoch, NY 12458
               Fl4)647 1653

-------
    DOCS kitchen staff collect large
bones and liquid fat in 30- to 50-gallon
barrels provided by a rendering
company. The company retrieves them
every two weeks free of charge and
processes these materials for
manufacture Into cosmetics and soaps.

Costs/Benefits
   Despite increased hauling and
   tipping rates, the Department's
trash disposal expenditures decreased
10.3% In the first seven years of its food
discard recovery program. In FY89,
DOCS spent $2.3 million on trash
disposal. In FY97,DOCS spent
$2,062,477 on trash disposal, avoiding
$2,350,957 in disposal costs through
the Department's recycling (including
composting) programs. In 1997,
handling material for composting costs
approximately $34 per ton. This covers
expenditures on capital equipment,
supplies, and civilian labor, including
the position of Resource Management
        jt  Director, which was
       -'   created to oversee the
           program. The average
          landfill tipping fee is $125
         per ton. Net savings through
      composting are approximately
      $91 per ton. Lowered fertilizer
costs at DOCS farms avoids additional
costs.
    Inmates feel positive about the
program. Able to see waste becoming
an end product, inmates feel part of a
productive process that makes sense.
Before the program began, inmates
watched a closed-circuit video on why
composting works, and how it saves
money and resources. Recycling,
Including composting, has become just
another way of doing  business at DOCS.
    Three facilities offer inmates
technical training in composting.
Inmates learn the basics of recycling,
such as what to do and where
recyclables (including compostables)
go once they are collected. Inmates
also learn technical aspects of the
processes. Guest speakers explain what
inmates can expect on the job.  When
they leave prison, inmates who  have
gone through this training will have
skills and some of the language that
qualify them for jobs in recycling,
including composting,facilities.
    DOCS provides communities with
free compost as a community service.
    DOCS uses some finished compost
on its farms, but most is used in inmate
horticulture programs and prison
landscaping. Eighty percent is used in-
house, providing large avoided costs
from not buying green house soil
mixes, peat moss, or mulches.Twenty
percent is used in inmate public service
programs.
     Tips for Replication
     •   Present a technically sound and
     feasible plan before start-up to ensure
     success.
     •   Involve everyone, from the
     superintendent to the commissioner to
     the maintenance workers, from the
     start.  Educate people so they
     understand why composting makes
     sense both environmentally and
     economically. If people understand
     why you are offering a good program,
     they will buy into it

                                                                      iiii
                     Program Summary, FY97
55	Meals per day                   125,000
iiSiii'lilfii	J1" IK! if' „ C	'" »<»11	' "S n .".",,,  ,	, ,	; , i"	 i, |	 ,, 11 ; h,' lllll, |l v,,: - d v   	,
                                   .orrecuonaf raciiiues                     » &
                                   lESiiilSiiEIES                  	!"!'""	!"T!T"7T~nr[ri i
  ?:::|te£t daje;;	
   Dedicated Employees*
 199g|t?s|tes;47 facilities in 1997
"l" 	'	'
  . MetRocT
                             	Food preparation discards, leftovers, chicken   j ±
                                	bones, soiled paper, waxed cardboard        " s
   Part of comprehensive waste
   ^^jglKsi} programf
 Yes
    btaI waste generated (TPY)
     3d and other organic discards   6,889 tons
           efTfpY
         .Iscarjds^re^oy^redjTPYI	;	gjJOOtons	^	,	;	v	 5,
    ood and other organic discards
                                  90% from participating facilities
                                       osting program;50% total solid waste , ,,: ffi
                                                risons
   * A dedicated employee is one whose primary responsibility is working with the food discard program.
   TPY = tons per year

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United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Solid Waste and
Emergency Response
(5306W)
EPA-530-F-98-023h
September 1998
www. epa.gov/osw
San  Francisco  Produce
Recycling Program
California
    Begun in 1996, the San Francisco Produce Recycling Program is a
    collaborative effort among many public and private participants—
    the city and county, produce businesses, a farmer, a-hauler, a food bank, and a
    composter. From June 1996 to August 1997, this program provided 450 tons of edible food
    to charities, 300 tons of inedible food as animal feed, and 750 tons of food to a composting
    facility. In that period, food discards came from more than 40 wholesale and retail
    businesses; the program has since greatly expanded.
 Program Description

  In 1997,the San Francisco Food Bank
  collected more than 60 tons a month of
 food from 25 wholesalers at the San Francisco
 Produce Terminal and from other city
 wholesalers. Food Bank staff collect food in its
 original packaging, as long as it is at least 50%
 edible, and transport it in a refrigerated truck
  to their warehouse where volunteers
   separate edible food from inedible food.
    The Food Bank distributes over 37 tons a
    month of edible food to member service
     agencies. A local dairy and heifer farmer
     collects the remaining inedible produce,
     which he and other farmers use as
    animal feed.
        In August 1996, Sunset Scavenger
     Company, a local hauler, began picking
     up some of the inedible produce the
      Food Bank could not collect from the
      produce terminal. Sunset Scavengers
       provided each participating business
       with a 1- or 2-cubic-yard unlined bin
        for its spoiled produce. Vendors
        keep these containers covered to
         avoid vector and odor problems as
          well as scavenging and illegal
          dumping. Sunset Scavengers
          added 12 wholesalers and one
          retailer in October 1996. The
          company began additional pick-
             up from seven large supermarkets in April
             1997 and from 14 Safeway supermarkets in
             fall 1997. It plans to expand to several
             hundred businesses to reach a goal of 8,000
             tons per year.  In fall 1997, Sunset Scavengers
             also expanded collection to include waxed
             corrugated cardboard. It hauls discards to
             Richmond Sanitary Compost Facility in
             Richmond, California, where the material is
             windrow composted along with yard
             trimmings. Finished compost is sold, mostly
             to professional landscapers.
                Before food-related businesses join the
             program, outreach contractors meet with
             employees to provide any needed assistance
             and staff training. The contractor also
             conducts monitoring and follow-up. For
             example, at a new supermarket, the
             contractor meets with the produce section
             supervisor to devise a plan for the store. As
             produce workers already separate out wilted
             lettuce leaves and spoiled fruit into boxes,

                 _anjcs Recycling Coordinator
                 lid Waste Management Program
                 :5 Market Street, Suite 401
                  &jind5Co,CA 94103
             __ Fj5f5543423 *
             Pfcc (415) 554-3434

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putting vegetative discards in the
square container provided by the city is
little extra work. Depending on the
supermarket's needs, Sunset Scavengers
will pick up one, two, three, or more
days a week.

Costs/Benefits
A$97,000 grant from the City and
   County of San Francisco provided
the San Francisco Food Bank with a
refrigerated truck for produce collection
and a partial year's salary for a full-time
driver. Future grants will help expand
collection and make capital
Improvements,  There is no cost to
wholesalers for  food bank and animal
feed services,
    San Francisco residents and
businesses pay variable trash rates
      based on  frequency of pick-up
       and weight or volume. These
        trash fees provide funding for
        Sunset Scavengers'organics
        pkk-up,and cover the cost of
       running two trucks (as of 1997),
which can accommodate food discards
from over 200 businesses.
    Benefits of this program are
manifold. Food service agencies save
money through reduced purchases;
they boost the nutritional value of the
food they serve. Farmers save money
on feed costs. The Richmond
Composting Facility produces higher
quality compost through this program.
Produce businesses save money
through lower trash costs as well as
through their tax-deductible donations
    to the Food Bank.
    The experience of two Produce
    Terminal vendors—Cooks
     Company and DeMatti Brothers—
     illustrates this program's cost"
      effectiveness to participating
      vendors. Cooks Company cut its
      trash bill by approximately 45%
      within four months of joining
the program. In fall 1997, the company
received trash pick-up once a week.
Previously, trash had been picked up at
least twice a week. DeMatti Brothers
reduced the size of its trash container
by half and reduced the number of
trash pick-ups from four a month to two
a month, reducing its trash bill by 10-
15%.
    For the first year, Sunset
Scavengers, which also collects trash
from the Produce Terminal, did not
charge businesses for pick-up of
compostables. In fall 1997, it began
charging at a rate that is 25% less than
what businesses pay for trash pick-up.
                                        Businesses that may have been
                                        reluctant to join will have a clear financial
                                        incentive. Sunset Scavengers predicts
                                        that vendors will reduce their total
                                        disposal costs by an average of 10%.


                                        Tips for Replication

                                        •    Place the highest use value on
                                        edible food redistribution. When
                                        developing your program, work with
                                        and support local food donation
                                        organizations to incorporate edible
                                        food recovery.
                                        •    Identify local regional markets for
                                        inedible food, including farmers and
                                        composters.
                                        •    Work with the hauler to develop a
                                        collection strategy and financial
                                        incentives for participating businesses.
                                        •    Put time into working with
                                        businesses. Provide monitoring and
                                        follow-up. Remind businesses that they
                                        reap many benefits from participating,
                                        including financial and public relations.
                          Program Summary
 IiisjSector                           Public/private col aborative: city and
 " i.' " ;"!: • , ,, ,!.!_	•,,; "•" jit1;:,'••::; •; .|' „ ;i ',  11|||, ||i ,| , IS,, i|' Ji'ml "iU"l\\ 'hi! iniiil' ™i i 'ii' i illi' i, n,lu"!i! ' II lil11'1!'!!1!!!'!!' lii'!' '" I '• i I il ill 111 lull! I'll i"li'i '''ullir''ilPi II1; ' III illn I 'llllliillll ll'111ll'l littlllnill'll ' nl Ilill II Illllll 'i i i l| ll 1 |lil, '^Jll	Illlili I'll
ii Dedicated city employees*        <0.25 plus 0.5 FTE contractor time
                                                                            := »
   Method
                                   Edible food donations; animal feed;
 i	
   COSTS:
 ~::::: Costs and savings fqr participating vendors are currently unavailable.

   * A dedicated employee is one whose primary responsibility is working with the food discard program.
   FTE = full-time equivalent        NA = not available    TRY = tons per year

-------
United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Solid Waste and
Emergency Response
(5306W)
EPA-530-F-98-023!
September 1998
www.epa.gov/osw
Shop  Rite
Supermarkets
New Jersey
80% Recovery of Food Discards and Other Organics
    In New Jersey, 25 Shop Rite stores divert 3,000 tons of organics per
    year. They collect a wide array of materials for off-site composting and rendering.
    As a result, participating stores divert approximately 80% of their organics to a composting
    facility and 90% of their total waste stream through recycling, including composting. On
    average, stores realize a net savings of $57 per ton in avoided disposal costs.
   Shop Rite Supermarkets began a pilot
   composting program in 1994. By summer
 1997, Shop Rite's compost program had
 grown to include 25 stores. They off-site
 compost a wide variety of organic materials,
 including floral and produce trimmings and
 spoils, out-of-date bakery items, old seafood,
 soiled paper products, waxed corrugated
 cardboard,food spills, and out-of-date dairy
  and deli products. Composting
   responsibilities are integrated into
    employee job descriptions. Each store
     runs its composting program differently,
     but typically staff in each department
     collect compostables in waxed
     corrugated cardboard boxes. These
     boxes are not recyclable but are
     compostable. Using original produce
     boxes to collect compostable produce
     allows the stores to avoid buying
     special collection containers. Staff put
      the whole,full box in a compactor,
       which is emptied once or twice a
       week.
            Compactors vary in size, with
        the largest holding 20 tons. These
         compactors were previously used
         for garbage. Because of the high
          diversion rate, stores now only
          need small dumpsters (12 cubic
          yards) for their garbage. A
             hauling company takes compacted organics
             to a composting site where they are ground
             with yard trimmings and windrow
             composted. The nutrient-rich finished
             compost is screened to remove contaminants.
             It is sold to farmers, golf courses,
             municipalities, and people involved in land
             reclamation.
                Shop Rite has no major problems with
             odors, vectors, or contamination. The
             compost site allows 5% contamination per
             load; it rejects highly contaminated loads,
             forcing stores to pay the additional costs of
             landfill disposal. Compactors are kept locked
             until a designated time each day when staff
             are directed to unload their compostables.
             This allows management to watch and ensure
             there are no contaminants.
                Rendering companies provide collection
             barrels and pick up meat product discards at
             no cost.
                                            J

-------
                                                                                  Tips for Replication
                                                                                  •   Analyze your waste management
                                                                                  practices; understand the economics of
                                                                                  your garbage.
                                                                                  »   Manage your organics recovery
                                                                                  program on a continuing basis. Pay
                                                                                  attention to it. The process does not
                                                                                  run on its own.
                                                                                  •   Train employees well.
Costs/Benefits
   Start-up and operating costs for the
   organics recovery program are
minimal. Most stores already had
compactors, which they used for
garbage and did not need to buy
collection containers. Stores also avoid
disposal costs for the waxed cardboard
boxes, which are composted along with
organics. There are some costs for
             employee training and for
             signs explaining the
             program. Some stores
      fl   have bought and installed
           an additional compactor.
        Through its food recovery
      program, each store avoids
$15,000 to $40,000 per year in disposal
costs. The lower cost avoidance may be
at a smaller store or in an area with a
lower tipping fee. New Jersey Shop Rite
stores pay an average tipping fee of $90
per ton for garbage and $33 per ton for
composting. Hauling fees for garbage
and recovered organics range from $11
to $17 per ton.
    Store employees typically live in
the same town as the store in which
they work. Participating in this hands-
on recycling program allows them to
contribute to their community by
reducing Its waste stream and
recovering valuable raw materials.
 fel
                 Program Summary, 1997
                                    "SjjperrnarKet"
                                     4.3 billion - Wakefern Food Corp./Shop Rite
                                           $ participating stores 1997
                                           'iilhii'idii'li ili i'j iiiiliilr	ii'ini1'1'*!'"!'!!' iWhiiiiiiiiiiniiiH ni1	nii'Viwi1'1 iinni	t\ n	i	iwi'iVi
                                                                              *-•
                                                                              11=1
•MateS
aterials collected
                                         ite windrow composting, private
                                         «uni«il»l»l1nin1n1nain-jiiri™ilL*imjlirnlhinnri»1nKiiili»n™lliliiKi1 iH..^^^^., Illpl'^JPrsil^llll.^!;;'^]!!1!;;!! '.iff '^ Wfffo [^jjpf^fg^pym 3
                                                                    	41
Floral ana produce trimmings, out-of-date
' !	M||iilill|ll|M	Wn	ln#"li	tnl:lil:1ntVil«A	^i;W1r:r:IR	1lplBlh**ef p	IM-MAMnll 	
>foaa soiled, paper, waxed qprrugated
          L'Ji "Ill'Ji, ^'IIIILIillil'iniiliBiliiiiilllfllli"'!!!!!1!!:!!!" SH UV	pilllllil"" ,'ji«i.l'ilV'liiiSi'llljlI'lBli11 ij.llli. |lil|ili|ll lliHIHIil""'! <
   " Eait ef Eamprehensivewaste
    ction program?
                                     Yes  	   |     '"
                                     4716T tons'(projected)
    Average compost tip fee           $33 per ton
  llAverageavoidedlandSirtipfee ......... $9 dper ton
    * Wakefern Foo'd Corporation is the largest retailer-owned supermarket food cooperative in the United
    States, with 190 supermarkets trading under the Shop Rite banner.
    ** A dedicated employee is one whose primary responsibility is working with the food discard program.
    Shop Rite did not need to hire anyone specifically to run this program,
    TRY = tons per year

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Record-Setting
Program
Del Mar Fairgrounds,
California
Fletcher Allen Health
Care, Vermont
Frost Valley YMCA,
New York

Green Workplace
Program, Government
of Ontario
                         Diversion Strategies
                                                    Materials Collected
                         Off-site composting;
                         on-site vermicomposting;
                         rendering
                        Off-site composting;
                        rendering; donations
                         On-site composting
                        Off-site composting;
                        on-site composting
Discards from fair food vendors, paper
plates, cups, napkins, towels; vegetable
and fruit scraps and other discards
from on-site kitchen; cooking oil

Kitchen food prep discards, leftovers
from steam tables; grease; edible
produce

AH pre- and post-consumerfood
scraps and leftovers

Pre- and post-consumer discards from
27 government restaurants and
cafeterias
                                                                                         Food Discards
                                                                                         and Other
                                                                                         Organics
                                                                                         Recovered
                                                                                         (tons per year)

                                                                                         51!(1996)
                                                                                         90(1997)



                                                                                         80(1997)


                                                                                         1,650 (FY96)
                                                                                                            % Estimated     % Total Waste
                                                                                                            Food Discards    Stream
                                                                                                            and Other       Recovered*
                                                                                                            Organics
                                                                                                            Recovered
                                                                                                            75%
                                                                                                            90%,pre-
                                                                                                            consumer
                                                                                                            100%
                                                                                                                             85%
                                                                                                                             33%
                                                                                                                             53%
                                                                                                                             60-80%
Larry's Markets,
Washington
                        Off-site composting;
                        Tendering; donations
                                                   Produce and floral trimmings and
                                                   spoils, waxed cardboard; meat and fish
                                                   trimmings; canned goods
                                      870(1995, est)     90%
                                                                                                                             64%
Middlebury College,
Vermont
                        On-site composting
                                                   Kitchen food prep discards and post-
                                                   consumer leftovers from cafeterias and
                                                   snack bars, waxed corrugated
                                                   cardboard
                                                                                         288 (1996)
                                                                                                            75%
                                                                          64%
New York State
Department of
Correctional Facilities
                        On-site composting at 30
                        facilities; off-site
                        composting at 17 facilities
                                                   Kitchen food prep discards, post-
                                                   consumer leftovers including chicken
                                                   bones;some sites accept paper towels
                                                   and mixed cardboard
                                                                                         6,200 (FY97)
San Francisco Produce
Recycling Program,
California
Shop Rite
Supermarkets, New
Jersey
University of
Massachusetts,
Amherst**
                        Donations.-animal feed;
                        off-site composting
                        Off-site composting;
                        rendering
                        On-site composting
                                                   Edible, non-salable produce; inedible      1,500 (June 1996
                                                   produce; spoiled produce and             - August 1997)
                                                   trimmings                                 '  '
Floral and produce trimmings and         3,000^(1997)
spoils, out-of-date bakery items, old
seafood, soiled paper products, food
spills, out-of-date dairy and deli
products, waxed corrugated cardboard;
meat products

Kitchen food prep scraps, pre-            250
consumer leftovers, post-consumer       . (September 1996
discards                               - August 1997)
                                                                                                            Greater than
                                                                                                            50% from
                                                                                                            participating
                                                                                                            businesses

                                                                                                            80%
                                                                                                                             MA
                                                                                                            50%
                                                                                                                             48%
* Reflects the total waste reduction achieved from comprehensive waste reduction efforts. As such, these recovery rates reflect reductions from all types of waste
and are not limited to organics recovery.
** No case study on this program is available at this time.

-------
Food Recovery Tips


Tips from
Record-Setters

*  Consult with your local and state
recycling coordinators.
    These solid waste planners may
help locate a market for food discards
or provide technical advice.
    Some agencies award grant
money for Innovative projects.
    If no end users exist locally, request
that local agencies such as the
department of solid waste or economic
development help develop some.
•  Network with other business
members to learn about their experiences
with food recovery programs.
*  Research the haulers and end users
in your area.
*  Anticipate barriers to a successful
program and how you will overcome
them. Learn from others. Ask
employees what potential problems
they see. They, after all, will be
responsible for running the program.
«  Train food service workers well, and
well ahead of program Implementation.
»  Monitor and periodically re-evaluate
your program.
«  Use composting diversion to reduce
your waste hauling and tipping costs.
•  Be creative.
                                      •  Designate a staff perso,
                                      encourage organics diversh
                                      •  Sponsor tours or demo,
                                      successful programs.
                                      «  Fund a pilot program.
                                      •  Develop a local compost)
                                      or other end user, if none exj
                                      •  Work with local haulers
                                      ers to provide pick-up sen/g
                                      discards—maybe indujje^fdodaiiscar3
                                                                r
                                      pick-ups along with reguTafirtffifficls-up!:.
                                                       J1
Tips for Solid Waste
Planners
•  Provide information on:
    local food discard end users
      and  haulers;
    local businesses/institutions
      recovering food discards; and
      legislation/regulations.
•  Lead by  example—institute a food
discard recovery program in your office.
  Resources

 >• General Resources                                     . *
      - State composting councils and environmental or agriculture
          agencies can provide information on composting
      - ,St^t;e veterinarians can provide information on diversion to animal feed
      - Local Chambers of Commerce can provide information on area rendering
          companies
      - Local charities, social service agencies, and local chapters of national charities
          can provide information on food donation
 .;   •; 7 YellcwPages or Internet headings such as composting, rendering, recycling,
 Hljmmjjjl ,ji!ii|i|ig-™- — • ™——_|——  	,	
 > Specific Resources
     " BioCycle,: Journal of Composting & Recycling published by JG Press, Inc. (610)
         967-4135                          .T^ly.V'^	...1 '  ".' ' "..'.",,.
'     -Other EPA fact sheets:
         Managing Food Scraps as Animal Feed
         Donating Surplus Food to the Needy
         Waste Reduction Tips for Hotels andGaming Establishments in Indian Country
         Reducing Food Waste in Indian Country
         Doing What it Takes to be Waste Wi$e: Food Manufacturing/Processing
         Industry
         Available by calling the RCRA Hotline: 1-800-424-9346 or 1-800-553-7672
         for the hearing impaired.
 	—• Compost: Because a Rind is a Terrible Thing to Waste by Jean Bonhotal and
         Karen Rollo. Available from: Cornell University Media Services Resource
         Center/ 7 BusinessAlechnology Park/ Ithaca, NY  14850,007-255-20.80, FAX
         607-255-9946, e-mail: Dist_Center@cce.corneIl.edu
     - A Guide to Commercial Food Composting by Composting Council Research and
         Education Foundation, 4424 Montgomery Avenue, Suite 102, Bethesda, MD
         20814,301-913-2885
     - A C/t/zen's Guide_ to Food Recovery by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, 1996.	
         Available from the USDA Food Recovery Hotline and National Hunger
  "	Clearinghouse by calling  1-800-GLEAN-IT
                                                                             I 1111
                                                                                    tu|N In II I  | i li| I  'I! ....... huh, ....... l!1«,ul4IM^
                                                                                   ,|j!^
                                                                                   iii;i!3

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                                                                               |,n LI Wl'ft: IllW f^ili niVij 'i 1 1| !» iirufijlf,! i |,j ...... | :', /il^L '} ,!„ i,i i „ ', i : h, i \\t *' ,|i , ..WrJillr!,1,^1, .
                                                                               E;:E:ES35^^^^^^^^^^


-------