You have a new way to recycle food scraps from home! This service will be available to all residents in Ramsey and Washington counties for free, with rollout beginning in 2023.
Learn more and get started by visiting FoodScrapsPickup.com or calling 651-661-9393.
Twenty percent of our trash is food waste. When you participate in the food scraps pickup program, your food waste and non-recyclable paper products are recovered, recycled, and turned back into soil. Recovering food scraps from trash provides health, environmental and economic benefits to the community.
Food scraps will be collected from residents using bags provided by the program called “food scrap bags.” Food scrap bags will be collected with trash and then separated from the trash after collection. This system requires no additional carts or trucks.
Order your free supply of food scrap bags.
Collect your food scraps in the bags. Once a week or when the bag is full, tie a knot at the top to close the bag.
Place your bag inside your trash cart or dumpster for collection.
Done! The food scraps will be composted.
Food scrap bags are thicker than compostable bags currently used at county drop-off sites or that you might purchase in a store or online. They are designed to hold up on the trip in a garbage truck. They’re also designed to eventually break down along with their contents.
There will be no charge to residents for bags or program participation. Bag distribution will occur through an online ordering system with a call-in option available for those without internet access.
Food scrap bags are an efficient and cost-effective method of collecting food scraps from residents’ homes. Benefits of this method include:
You can bring collected food scraps to a Ramsey or Washington County food scraps drop-off site.
You may call 651-661-9393 for additional program information.