How to compost in Detroit—and why you should

At Brother Nature Produce in North Corktown, you’ll find several tall piles of organic waste. But despite the fact that the food is essentially rotting, it doesn’t smell at all.

That’s because husband and wife farmers Greg Willerer and Olivia Hubert have developed an ideal balance of food scraps, yard waste, straw, and microbes that feed off the material. With regular maintenance, those piles produce mineral-rich compost that can be used to augment the soil and future produce grown at the farm. That’s one reason why their signature greens sold at Eastern Market and restaurants around Detroit taste so good.

Many people are aware of the benefits of composting and are eager to start. But for non-farmers in Detroit, how do you do it?

Why you should compost

For those on the fence, there’s a number of benefits to composting. “There’s 101 reasons people should be doing it,” Willerer says.

Most obviously, it enriches the soil. In Detroit, where there’s elevated levels of lead in the ground, that matters a lot. Regularly recycling and enriching the soil improves the health of the land and residents, especially the city’s children.

The nutrients from the compost then get funneled into the produce that’s grown out of the soil, sold at market, and eaten. Those fruits and vegetables are much better for you than food produced at an industrial scale, even if it’s organic. Larger farms tend to use synthetic fertilizers, which are great for growing crops, but provide no benefits to the soil and ultimately the produce.

In other words, food grown with organic fertilizer is a lot better for you and the environment. “It’s is a solution to our soil and it’s a solution to our health,” Willerer says. “In Detroit, we have all this space. You can’t do it on this scale, and have fresh produce available at market cut three hours ago, in New York or Chicago.”

Composting is also a form of waste diversion and reduces stress on landfills. And it has a net positive effect on the amount of carbon in the atmosphere by naturally breaking down waste and reducing emissions from vehicles that transport it.

What food can you compost?

You can’t simply put any food scraps into the compost bin. If uneaten cheese or chicken, for example, ends up there, it will break down too slowly, attract rodents and maggots, and begin to smell rotten. Composting the wrong food will not only ruin your pile, but upset your neighbors.

But there’s still a lot you can compost. The most common items are vegetable and fruit scraps, especially the parts you don’t usually eat like rinds, cores, peels, and husks. Other common scraps include coffee grounds (and filters), tea bags, and egg shells.

Never compost meat, fish, dairy products, or oils.

How to DIY

Don’t consider this a complete guide—there’s lots of in-depth resources on the internet about successfully maintaining a compost pile.

But the general idea is this: Buy or make a compost bin and chuck any food waste into it. Add dry leaves, yard waste, and water (if necessary) to adjust the pile’s moisture level. Turn the compost occasionally to make sure every part is exposed to oxygen. After several months, the pile will hopefully look dark and crumbly, and be ready to use.

At that point, you can work it into the soil of your garden, trees, or potted plants, and let the organic material do its magic.

How to give it away

Don’t want to bother with the hassle of maintaining a compost pile? Looking to throw it in a sealable bin and give it away? There are some, but not many options.

Midtown Composting & Recycling offers a residential pickup service for $16 a month in select Detroit zip codes. Unlimited Recycling offers a similar commercial service—use its website to request a quote.

Many urban farms let people drop-off their organic waste, but it’s often through informal channels. Brother Nature Produce, for example, doesn’t just let anyone bring their scraps to the farm. It instead screens people to make sure they know what kind of waste is acceptable. Check with your community farm or garden to see if they’ll accept your compost.

Better yet, start or volunteer at one near you. Then, you’ll have more than enough uses for your food scraps.