In 2021, EDCO finished construction of a state-of-the-art anaerobic digestion (AD) facility to process organic waste. The AD facility will allow Encinitas residents and businesses to recycle their food waste and green waste, preventing it from ending up in the landfill. Diverting organic waste from the landfill will help the City meet its greenhouse gas and waste reduction goals. Curbside food scraps and green waste recycling will begin for Encinitas residents by using their green roll-out carts in June 2021.

The City of Encinitas, EDCO, and Solana Center for Environmental Innovation created the following resources to make the transition to collecting food waste more convenient for residents:

• Organics Recycling Resource Sheet - What Should go in the Green Bin?
• Organics Recycling Program - FAQ Flyer
• Organics Recycling Program - FAQ Full List
• EDCO's Organics Recycling - What You Need to Know
• EDCO - Organics and Anaerobic Digestion Video

Recursos en español:

• ¿Qué debe ponerse en el bote verde?
• Programa de Reciclaje de Residuos Orgánicos Preguntas Frecuentes (FAQs)
• Programa de Reciclaje de Residuos Orgánicos Preguntas Frecuentes (FAQs) - lista completa

What else can you do to reduce organic waste? Learn more about food waste prevention and composting.

What Can Contaminate the Green Bin?

When you participate in the EDCO organic recycling program, you are part of a circular process supporting the future of our City and environment. Sorting organic materials in your home and business allows your unwanted food scraps to be recycled into biofuels and nutrients for the earth. What you put in your green bin matters! Want to test your knowledge? Watch this video and see how you do with our Organic Recycling Sorting Quiz!

Organic waste is any material that is biodegradable and comes from either a plant or an animal. Organic waste, including food and green waste, takes up the largest portion of waste in our landfills, making up 30% of our waste stream. When in landfills, organic waste decomposes to produce methane, one of the most potent greenhouse gases, along with other odorous and noxious gases. Reducing organic waste in landfills by food waste prevention, composting, and organics recycling reduces methane emissions, extends the life of local landfills, and creates valuable products such as renewable natural gas and fertilizer.

EDCO distributed kitchen caddies, compostable paper food waste bags, and informational materials to all single-family home residential customers in Encinitas. These caddies will help residents conveniently separate food scraps and other organic materials in their kitchen for the organics recycling program.

How to Use Your Kitchen Caddie

Do you have a home garden with excess produce?

The City of Encinitas has partnered with Healthy Day Partners to put your excess produce to good use! You can contribute to a healthier community and donate your produce by dropping it off at donation stations across Encinitas. Learn more on the Fresh Food Connect website.

Do you have fruit trees with excess produce?

The City of Encinitas has partnered with ProduceGood to assist in harvesting and collecting excess citrus and avocados to benefit San Diego’s Charitable Food System. Either pick and donate the produce yourself, of schedule a group of ProduceGood volunteers to pick and collect the produce for you. Learn more information and how to register through the ProduceGood website.

Before EDCO offers food and green waste recycling via the green cart, these materials can easily be diverted from the trash by composting or vermicomposting (with worms). Composting is an easy way to convert kitchen and yard waste into fertilizer for gardens and landscaping. To support residents in making the transition to composting, the city subsidizes the cost of compost bins and workshops, both of which are available through Solana Center for Environmental Innovation. Composting prevents air pollution and saves money, energy, and water. Adding compost to soil will also improve soil structure, improve soil chemistry, and produce healthier plants.

Composting resources from Solana Center:

• Compost It Yourself Guide: Guide To Backyard Composting
• What Is Composting and Why Do It?
• Choose a Compost Style That Works for You
• Composting Basics
• The Compost Continuum
• Vermicomposting Basics (Composting With Worms)
• Harvesting and Using Your Compost
• Compost Troubleshooting & Additional Resources

Another solution for diverting food scraps is the Solana Center's Food Cycle Program. Solana Center accepts participating community members’ food scraps and processes these organic materials on-site to create a high-quality soil supplement, using the bokashi method. The program also allows participants to collect finished compost for their home gardens.

The EPA estimates that more food reaches landfills and incinerators than any other single material in the typical household's trash, constituting 22 percent of discarded municipal solid waste. Surprisingly, however, one in six San Diegans is food insecure.

The state of California and the City of Encinitas are both taking strides to tackle this issue through new policies and programs to help businesses and residents avoid wasting food and divert what is left away from landfills to useful applications.

Nonprofit organization, Save the Food created resources to help Encinitas residents prevent food waste.

• 10 Easy Tips for Meal Planning
• The Refrigerator Demystified
• Fall and Winter Produce Storage Guide
• "Eat Me First" Fridge Bin Tray

Recursos en español:

• Consejos para Combatir el Desperdicio de Alimentos
• Guía para Almacenar Productos Frescos de Primavera y de Verano
• Guía para Almacenar Productos Frescos de Otoño e Invierno

1. Prevention of Food Waste

For residents, the City created an informational guide for Preventing Food Waste in Your Home Kitchen.

For businesses, reducing food waste improves their bottom line. Below are resources that can help businesses develop their food waste prevention plan:

• Food: Too Good to Waste! – County of San Diego
• Preventing Wasted Food Through Source Reduction - U.S. EPA
• Food Waste Reduction Best Practices and Emerging Solutions Guide– Food Waste Reduction Alliance Save the Food

2. Donation of Edible Food

Approximately 500,000 San Diego residents annually do not know where their next meal is coming from, yet almost 500,000 tons of food waste is sent to the landfill regionally. To help solve this, the City wants to support businesses in setting up systems to donate food to help end hunger throughout San Diego County. In 2022, large edible food generators will be required to donate food under SB 1383. Following are resources on edible food donation:

• Food Waste Donation Guide for San Diego County
• Checklist for Safe Food Handling for Donation in San Diego County
• USDA Food Donation
• Feeding America – San Diego
• San Diego Food Bank
• San Diego North County Alliance

3. Collection of Food Waste

After all possible means of food waste prevention and donation of edible food have been pursued, remaining food waste materials can be collected for recycling/composting. As the City’s franchised waste hauler, EDCO will be responsible for providing collection services for food waste. In 2021, food waste recycling (along with green waste) will be available to Encinitas residents and businesses. Waste assessments to help maximize overall waste diversion efforts (organics and recycling) are also available through EDCO upon request.