We have a two main areas of focus at Adirondack Worm Farm. The first is all things worm-related: red wiggler composting worms, vermicast, and educational presentations on setting up your own worm bin. Then there's the curbside composting operation, where we pick up food scraps and other biodegradable items from customers who want to compost, but don't know how, or don't have the time, space or physical ability to do so.
We compost for these folks, and provide them compost back once a year. We track how much material we collect, and this week, we provided the first of our individualized "quarterly reports" to customers, letting them know exactly how much they've composted, and what that translates into in terms of environmental success.
The numbers vary based on how long a customer has been with us, how many people are in their household, and other personal differences. But what's common throughout is that most of our customers are surprised at how quickly the numbers add up.
Within a few short months, most folks have diverted hundreds of pounds from the waste stream, saving the equivalent in greenhouse gas emissions of driving 1,000 miles or more.
Our top customer? In just one year, their family set aside 1,000 pounds of food waste, which cut their household carbon footprint the same as keeping a car off the road for eight months!
All combined, our customers have diverted 1.5 tons of food waste to be composted instead of thrown away, and in the process saved the equivalent of 19,000+ miles of driving!