Misconceptions about collecting organic waste in the workplace with Kaicycle

Kaicycle: Busting Myths About Workplace Organics

Method is lucky to now have our organics collected through Wellington's urban farm, local composter, and community educator, Kaicycle. Our small office in Wellington was struggling to find the right provider because we had no back area to store a wheelie bin. We are excited to share that Kaicycle now has more capacity to bring on businesses around central Wellington.

So if you're a small to medium business with up to 60L of organic waste a week, you can have your scraps collected by the super-local, low-carbon provider Kaicycle.

While we were speaking to Kaicycle, we thought why not ask the experts to bust some myths around organics in the workplace? Kaicycle was started in Wellington in 2015, by a handful of passionate people with the shared vision of growing nutritious food in the heart of the city, composting local food scraps to feed the soil, and boosting the well-being of their community and ecosystem.

Today Kaicycle is Pōneke's impact-focused food waste collection and composting provider, with 41.3 tons of food scraps diverted from landfill and composted in the past year alone. They collect organic waste by e-bikes and trailers, composting it into rich soil that is then donated to local community groups and used to grow nutritious food. In just the last year, they've avoided 28 tons of CO2-e of landfill emissions through composting organic waste and donated 19,000 liters of living compost to community gardens, māra kai, schools, and marae.

Kate Walmsley, Kaicycle's Composting manager, said: "Collecting your business' organics and sending them to composting is a simple way to improve your sustainability and take action on climate change. Even if you're small, the amount of organics you produce does add up over the year! If you separate it, you can start to measure it and see improvements over time. It's also an opportunity to get your employees thinking about food waste – and encourage the wider culture change we desperately need on how we manage resources and waste and reduce emissions. A lot of people feel good about being able to make more sustainable choices at work."

Debunking Common Myths about Organic Waste Collection

Organic Waste Collection Doesn't Make a Significant Impact

Organic waste in a landfill emits methane, a greenhouse gas that is 80 times more damaging than CO2. This is a significant impact, especially when you consider organics account for up to 40% of office waste. A ton of food scraps and coffee grounds per year would produce around 600 kg of CO2 equivalent in landfill – and that's accounting for the share burnt off by gas capture. To put that into perspective, for a typical Kaicycle customer with 30-50 staff in the office each day, that's 300 kg CO2 equivalent a year. More so, by composting the food waste, the materials can be turned into nutritious soil and be used to grow more kai. Kaicycle donates compost to schools and community gardens. It can be tough to find good quality compost in Wellington, and it's costly.

It's Just Another Expense

Businesses often think of waste as a fixed cost, but there are often efficiencies that can be made to reduce costs in the long run, especially if you're able to reduce how much you're sending to landfill. Then you're able to factor in that the cost has a positive impact, reduces carbon credits needed, and can help your business demonstrate progress toward ESG goals and corporate responsibility and something tangible your staff can participate in every day.

Only Large Companies Can Implement These Programs

Our (Kaicycle's) service is well suited to smaller offices – many of our customers are Wellington businesses. We provide buckets that we collect weekly from your office so you don't have to do anything.

Organic Waste Collection Attracts Pests and Odors

Often this is much more of a perceived issue than an actual one! You're going to have organic waste whether it is separated for composting or put into the landfill bin. There are lots of things you can do to mitigate pests and odours, and more so if organics are separate. Use a bin with a lid for your organics, have it serviced regularly, and be considerate of what you are collecting. Kaicycle doesn't accept meat, dairy, or liquids (e.g., broth, the undrunk plunger of coffee), which helps keep smells down.

Organic Waste is Not a Significant Portion of Total Waste

You might be surprised… just coffee grounds alone really stack up! If you don't separate it, you can't measure it. And because organics are so potent at generating methane in landfill, small amounts punch well above their weight, in a bad way. Paper and cardboard are also organic materials, and produce a lot of methane in landfill. It's also important to reduce and recycle these materials.

Employees Won't Participate

If you're in central Wellington, get in touch with Kaicycle to discuss getting your organics collected. If you're not in Wellington, look out for a local urban farm. There are so many benefits from community-centred composting and food growing. Food is the ultimate connector, and bringing people together to garden, share kai, and share skills is good for people's mental health (there's a lot of scientific literature about this) and building community. It's good for urban biodiversity, below and above ground. Productive green spaces, including urban farms, help with stormwater management and store carbon in the soil.