- 2021 Annual Report
- New Member Orientation
- How to Join the IFSC
- Jen Jarland, IFSC Chairman, farewell
- Committee Spotlights
- Member Spotlights
- USCC Updates
- Events, News, and Resources
- 2022 Meeting Schedule
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Compost keeps turning in Illinois. See what we've been up to in 2021, including our highlighted projects and accomplishments, events attended, and growth in our signature programs.
Click HERE to view the Illinois Food Scrap Coalition's 2021 annual report. |
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Join our New Member Orientation on Monday, January 24th from 12-1pm via Zoom to learn about our committees, history, and key resources. All new IFSC members are highly encouraged to attend! Renewing members are invited as well to learn about resources at your disposal and how you can amplify your work and mission through the IFSC. |
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Join Us as a Supporting Member or Sustaining Partner |
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Food waste is too valuable of a resource to send to the landfill. Join the IFSC to help bring meaningful change to the food waste landscape, promote the circular economy, and rejuvenate Illinois soils with nutrient-rich composts that support local food systems, healthy lawns, and resilient gardens!
We count on your annual membership contributions to progress our work in food scrap composting and diversion. Support us today to make a difference.
Individual supporting member: $50
Organization supporting member (up to 3 members): $150
Silver Sustaining Partner (up to 3 members): $500
Gold Sustaining Partner (up to 3 members): $1,000
Platinum Sustaining Partner (up to 3 members): $3,000
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Join the Board of Directors |
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As composting grows in Illinois we are seeking to grow our board. Board elections are held in May and we are always looking for fresh and informed perspectives. Board members help guide the direction of IFSC’s work in the state. We encourage individuals from diverse backgrounds and sectors to apply. The Board of Directors meets every 4th Monday of the month from 2-3:30pm and terms of service are for two years. Email benjamin@compostingpartners.com with your interest. |
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Letter from outgoing Chairman, Jen Jarland |
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Hello Composter!
I am leaving my post as Chairman of the Illinois Food Scrap Coalition (IFSC), along with my job at Kane County as recycling coordinator. The reason is because I am going to travel to Australia to be with my mum and brothers for a while. My family moved to Byron Bay from Montana back in 1988, and I lived there for 17 years before returning to the states 17 years ago. And they are all still there, along with my sisters-in-law, nieces and nephew (all grown now). It’s time for a return to the arms of my people. As I depart, I wanted to share some thoughts with you all.
Firstly it has been an honor and privilege to serve the IFSC in various roles over the past 10 years: as a founding member back in 2012, then as the secretary of the newly formed board of directors in 2016, and I was the first Administrative Coordinator in 2016 for about six months before we hired Liz Bosarge as our first employee. And since 2018 I have been the Chairman of the board. Yes, I prefer the title “Chairman” because Chair sounds like a piece of furniture and Chairwoman does not exactly role off the tongue. I consider it similar to the “man” in human. Being the chairman has been both challenging and rewarding.
Since that first forum in 2012, we have seen much change and expansion in the Illinois composting industry, thanks to all of the contributions of our members and our working committees. If you are interested in learning more about all of the accomplishments that IFSC has made every year over the last decade, please go to https://illinoiscomposts.org/about-2/ and scroll down to Annual Reports. |
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With the help of all of our supporting members and sustaining partners, we have been able to reach far and dig deep into the ground of this movement in Illinois, through a number of targeted efforts, including: conducting and partnering in events ( Communications); education to schools, institutions, legislators, municipalities, and composters ( Education); networking and connecting stakeholders in the industry to strengthen and expand the markets for finished compost ( Market Development); recognizing the active and successful composters in our communities ( Recognition); and by participating in advocacy work to make it easier for people to compost ( Policy).
The best part of this experience for me has been getting to work with so many inspired and committed people, and watching the industry expand and improve over the years. I know that the trajectory we have set will continue upward and outward, and that every year more food scraps will be saved from a fate at the landfill than ever before.
Happy 10th anniversary to this effective and robust coalition! Keep your compost cookin’ my friends.
Farewell!
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Committee Spotlight: We Compost |
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The We Compost committee welcomed 12 new partners in its We Compost recognition program this past year, including:
1. Village Farmstand
2. Evanston Rebuilding Warehouse
3. MKB Architects
4. Side Practice Coffee
5. Coffee Hip Hop and Mental Health
6. Uncommon Closet
7. City Grange
8. Concordia University
9. Evanston Lands
10. River Forest Public Library
11. Wiseacre Farm
12. Bennet Day School
You can Additionally, with the support of the We Compost intern, Nirali Shaw, UIC class of '21, all 60 Illinois municipalities that provide curbside composting were recognized through social media and sent a certificate of appreciation. To view a list of all Illinois municipalities providing this service, visit our page HERE.
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Seven Generations Ahead Celebrates 20 Years! |
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Oak Park-based environmental nonprofit, Seven Generations Ahead (SGA), celebrates its 20th anniversary on November 1st, 2021. For two decades, it has been a leader in environmental sustainability initiatives and advocacy throughout the Chicagoland area and beyond. SGA has helped launch composting and zero waste programs across numerous schools and municipalities in Illinois. It oversees a statewide farm to school program that supports healthy, local, fresh food in schools. And for 14 years, SGA has run its annual fundraiser, the Oak Park Micro Brew Review, which has become the largest zero-waste craft beer fest in the Midwest.
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SCARCE Smashes Record in '21 on a Gourd-ous day!
Block Bins helps recovery extra pumpkin corpses
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58 locations registered in 2021. With nearly 90% of locations reporting back 230.7 tons of pumpkins composted. Last year was 159.4 tons. That's a lot of pumpkins. Thanks everyone for helping get the word our this year!
Illinois Extension organized a Smash event with 47th ward's Lakeview Highschool. The school collected 8.25 tons, but people kept coming with their pumpkins, so Block Bins who brought their truck just for display, was able to collect an additional 2 tons. Thank you everyone for "pitching" in!
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Collective Resource Compost marks milestones! |
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Collective Resource Compost just became a State Certified Women Owned Business. Heck yeah! Also this year, they reached 8,000 tons diversion since their founding.
Congratulations to CRC!
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The time is ripe for advancing composting |
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By Frank Franciosi , US Composting Council
Never has the time been better for advancing the composting industry through legislation and regulation. At the US Composting Council, we've been monitoring bills at the state level - where most of our work has focused since our founding in the 1990s - because this is where solid waste flow control happens in the U.S. If you looked back just five years ago, and searched legislative databases for state bills related to composting, only a handful would turn up. However, a recent search of Legiscan showed more than 500 state bills with the word "compost" in them across the U.S., and more than 300 bills focused on healthy soil.
Currently, we have legislation at the federal level being worked on including The Compost Act, which is meant to build infrastructure and catalyze compost use on farms across the U.S.
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The US Composting Council's Virtual Compost 2021, "Sharing Local Solutions Globally" conference will be held January 24th to 27th. |
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The opening plenary session will feature international compost industry leaders. Concurrent sessions are offered on a variety of topics including: infrastructure development; managing feedstock and compost contamination; addressing climate change; safety; organics diversion in the workplace; creating efficiencies in compost operations; and food safety using compost in production. More information can be found on Schedule at a Glance - Virtual COMPOST2021 - USCC Conference Site (compostconference.com).
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Compost Use Applications - A Return on Investment (ROI) |
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In 2020 during the COMPOST2020 conference, many people and organizations donated generously to fund this new research project. The goal of this project was to research current literature and studies documenting ROI and then create specification use factsheets (spec sheets) that provide specific instructions for use and explain the ROI for very specific applications, completing the recycling loop: collection, processing, using the final product. While organic diversion has increased, market demand for compost has not kept pace. Many compost facilities have growing stockpiles. One reason for this is that it has been difficult to educate the market on the economic benefits of applying compost. These 10 factsheets have been created to help with that education process. |
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The comprehensive, definitive reference guide on composting, THE COMPOSTING HANDBOOK, has just been published |
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January 13, 2022, Raleigh, NC - Through a collaboration with the Compost Research & Education Foundation (CREF) and the publisher Elsevier, the just-published book, The Composting Handbook, is available in both paperback and electronic versions. As the much-expanded sequel to the On-Farm Composting Handbook, this book is the authoritative, all-in-one guide to composting principles and practices for commercial-scale composting.
KEY FEATURES
- Provides the first comprehensive resource in decades including the latest information on compost science and compost methods, with a focus on both academic and practical insights and advances.
- Written for the composting community by the composting community by a diverse group of authors with broad-ranging backgrounds, from academic scientists to compost producers and users
- 1002 pages and hundreds of full-color illustrations and photographs
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International Compost Awareness Week
May 1-7, 2022
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The ICAW Committee of the Compost Council Research & Education Foundation has announced the winning poster design and video for ICAW 2022 "Recipe for Regeneration: Compost"
Since 1995, ICAW has helped promote the importance of composting and the long-term benefits from organics recycling. This program raises public awareness of the benefits of compost to improve and maintain high quality soil, to grow healthy plants, reduce the use of fertilizer and pesticides, improve water quality and protect the environment.
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Events, News, & Resources |
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Did you know? The IFSC has monthly meetings via conference call so you can join from wherever you are. Meetings are on the first Monday of the month, unless otherwise noted. 2022 meeting dates: 2/7, 3/7, 4/4, 5/2, 6/6, (July newsletter in lieu of meeting), 8/1, 9/12 (2nd Monday), 10/3, 11/7, 12/5
How to connect
Via phone: call in number: (312) 626 6799
Access code: 034706#
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Thank you to new and renewed partners for 2022 |
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Members and partners recognized below are as of December 31, 2021 |
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PLATINUM SUSTAINING PARTNERS |
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SILVER SUSTAINING PARTNERS |
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Beans & Bagels
Biobag USA
Composting Partners
Healthy Soil Compost LLC
IPM Institute
Northern Illinois Food Bank
Novamont
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Land and Lakes
Mindful Waste
Recycling Connections
River Forest Sustainability Commission
We Care Denali
We Sow We Grow
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Amy Bartucci
Annie Blackie
Cecilia Carmen
Monica Chia Chen
Dane Christianson
Amy Delorenzo
Pat Dieckhoff
Carya Haas
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Nora Goldstein
Jeannine Kannegiesser
Ben Killman
Kat Morris
Steven Schilling
Joy Scrogum
Jodie Wine
Irene Zlevor
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Illinois Food Scrap Coalition
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