Residential Compost Guide
What’s the word on all things groovy and all things soupy, you ask? Here’s our compost guide on items we accept and items we are currently unable to process through our residential drop-off program.
Have a question on other items not listed here, or are a commercial client? Send us a message and we’ll let you know whether or not we accept it.
Click here to download a PDF version of this compost guide – print it and tack it on your fridge!
Accepted, Compostable Items
- Fruits and vegetables
- Herbs and spices
- Coffee grounds and paper filters
- Loose tea leaves (note: we do not accept any type of tea bags, tea strings, tea wrappers, or othter tea packaging)
- Eggshells
- Bread
- Cut flowers and houseplants
- Paper napkins, paper towels, and paper bags (with all tape and staples removed)
- Shredded, non-glossy paper
- Cardboard (cut up, with all tape and staples removed)
- Biobag-brand compostable liners
Unaccepted Items
- Dairy
- Meat and fish
- Oils and grease
- Plastics, including all produce stickers
- Garbage
- Clothing
- "Compostable" and "biodegradable" serviceware (including utensils, plates, cups, and compostable liners other than Biobag)
- Parchment paper and wax paper
- Pet waste
compostable plastics - what's the deal?
What is the deal with compostable plastics and why can’t Queen City Commons take them? Single-use items like coffee cups, to-go boxes, and utensils that are labeled as “compostable” or “biodegradable” are a very hot topic. Unfortunately, for a few reasons described below, these materials compromise the quality of our partners’ compost piles and can limit the benefits of successful composting.
- Compostable plastics don’t always adequately break down. Compostable single-use items are not reliably regulated or certified, so it can be hard to know where they come from or what they’re made of. Even compostable plastics that are adequately certified require compost piles to get hotter than necessary to break them down.
- Compostable plastics invite look-alikes. The labelling and packaging of compostable and non-compostable plastics can be confusing. Accepting some of these items increases contamination of real plastic and other non-compostable material.
- Compostable plastics aren’t nutrient-dense or organic. Our farm and garden partners aim to produce high-quality and organic compost. Compost piles with compostable plastics in them cannot be considered organic by USDA standards.
- Sometimes, recycling these materials is an environmentally better option. Between the recycling services in Cincinnati and Hamilton County and the Cincinnati Recycling & Reuse Hub, most single-use items are actually recyclable.
- Compostable plastics are still single-use items. Just because something says “compostable” doesn’t necessarily mean it’s better for the environment. While composting is about diverting food scraps from the landfill, it is just as much about improving our local soils. Soil health can be negatively affected by the incorporation of these compostable plastics. We also want to pose the question – just how much better is a “compostable” fork than a plastic fork when they’re both items that require ample energy to produce, but are only meant to be used once?
To learn more about other places in the United States taking a stance against collecting compostable plastics, read here and here.