Closed Loop Co-op Process Turns Food Waste Into Food

A Boston, Mass.-area co-op named CERO (Cooperative Energy, Recycling and Organics) comprises three garbage haulers whose job is to gather and compost food waste collected from restaurants, hospitals, grocery stores and schools. (The organizations pay the co-op to collect the garbage.) Once the scraps undergo microbial digestion – about a year later – the compost is distributed to regional farms to be used to grow vegetables. That produce in turn is sold to local restaurants, stores, etc., forming a closed loop. The worker-owned cooperative also keeps the profits in the community.