Food waste reduction organization ReFED has estimated that nearly 316,000,000 pounds (or 158,000 tons) of food will be wasted this Thanksgiving, totaling $556,000,000 or five meals to each of the 47,400,000 people that are food insecure in the United States. Cut down on these numbers and work on reducing your food waste this year by following these reminders!
Leftovers/Food Waste: Food waste makes up approximately 22% of the total waste stream going into the Regional Landfill. When food waste is landfilled it produces methane, which is one of the most harmful greenhouse gases. Instead of throwing your leftovers away, try to share, freeze or compost them. You could even establish a dedicated food waste bin at your gathering and bring what you collect to the Authority’s Utica EcoDrop so it can be disposed of at our Food2Energy facility. Here, your food waste will be turned into electricity instead of going to the landfill! The Utica EcoDrop is located at 824 Sewage Plant Road and is open Monday-Friday 8am-4pm and Saturday 7am-2pm.
Cooking Oil: Do not pour cooking oil down your drain or directly into your garbage or recycling bin. After being used, cooking oil should be cooled completely and be placed into an unbreakable, leak-proof container. Cooking oil can be brought to the Authority’s Utica EcoDrop, where it will be picked up by a rendering company that processes it into animal feed.
Donations: Make the season of giving an opportunity to clean out your pantry! Any non-perishable food items that have not passed their expiration date can be donated to one of the many local organizations accepting food donations this time of year.
Other Recycling Reminders
- Cardboard boxes that go in your refrigerator or freezer are not recyclable. This is because they have a chemical in them that keeps them from breaking down if they get wet. Recycling mills are not able to remove this chemical from the paper fibers that make up the cardboard, therefore they are a garbage item. Boxes that go in your pantry can be placed in your curbside recycling bin.
- Aluminum foil sheets and trays can be recycled in your curbside recycling bin as long as they are free of any food residue.
- Plastic bottles, cups and containers are accepted for recycling. Please ensure that all of your recyclables are free of any food residue and are rinsed out before placing them in your recycling bin.
- Broken glass is not recyclable and should be put into a paper or plastic bag before putting it in your garbage bin.
- Cartons that contain milk, juice or cream can be recycled. Any other cartons (specifically cartons with a Tetra Pak logo on them) are not recyclable and should be disposed of in your garbage bin.
All Authority facilities will be closed on Thanksgiving, Thursday, November 28th, 2024. Regular business hours will resume on Friday, November 29th, 2024.
Have questions on how to reduce your waste this Thanksgiving? Please contact the Authority at 315-733-1224 or ohswa@ohswa.org. More information can also be found on the Authority’s website at www.ohswa.org or on the Authority’s Facebook, Instagram or LinkedIn pages.