The Composter Podcast

Latest Episodes:

Catch Compost Fever with Marvin Hayes of The Baltimore Compost Collective Sep 16, 2024

Show notes

Marvin Hayes from the Baltimore Compost Collective is one of the most passionate compost advocates out there, spreading his compost fever. It became apparent that his love and respect for the compost process is only matched by his celebration for empowering the young people of Baltimore through compost.

Mentioned in the show...

The Institute for Local Self-Reliance

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You can learn more about Viably, formerly Komptech, and their portfolio of compost solutions at thinkviably.com. While there, request a complimentary consultative meeting to discover how Viably can help your compost operation deliver what is possible.

The OSC Pack Pact is a collective action campaign that works to reduce single-use packaging in the natural products industry. Receive a discount code to shop select products from leading natural products brands that you love. Click the link in the show notes to join the Pack Pact!

Compost use and selection decisions involve many factors and are not one-size-fits-all. The U .S. Composting Council's Seal of testing assurance, STA program helps you make the best decisions for your application. Learn about the three Cs of the STA program, clarity, consistency, and confidence and enroll at compostingcounsel.org

Green Mountain Technology's mission is to help organizations around the world realize the economic and environmental gains that can be achieved by a well-designed composting system. Learn more at compostingtechnology.com

On-Farm Johnson-Su Composting for Thousands of Acres with Tyler Zimmerman Sep 09, 2024

Show notes

Last winter, I went to Covington, Kentucky for the Acres USA EcoAG Conference. It was my kind of nerd fest. I listened to researchers sharing their newest findings, learned from farmers, and my ultimate favorite, connecting with people about compost. It's where I first learned about James White's research from Rutgers on the rhizophagy cycle. It blew my mind hearing and seeing how plant roots are actually consuming microbes. I heard practical farming techniques from John Kemph and spent time with lots of farmers. Today, we are going to chat with one of these farmers, who I actually met in the elevator at the conference. Tyler Zimmerman is a third-generation farmer with 2 ,800 acres in North Dakota. Tyler transitioned the farm to no-till regenerative practices. He's a wealth of information about soil health and so very practical. We dive into his techniques for making vibrantly living compost and the tall task of spreading that on such big acreage.

Follow Tyler's process and progress on Instagram

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A Small-Scale Neighborhood Compost Company w/ Andreas Ruiz of Regenera Organico Sep 01, 2024

Show notes

I absolutely love how small the world is and how compost can connect us all! This March, I visited San Francisco and found myself at a party where I knew only one person. I got into a great conversation with an architect named Chabe, who grew up in Chile. After a rich chat about South America, architecture, school, and immigration, we talked about her family. It turned out her brother, Andreas, runs Regenera Organico, a compost operation in Chile. So cool, of course, everything comes back to compost for me. I couldn't wait to talk to Andreas. Regenera Organico is located in the middle of a densely populated neighborhood, with rugged mountains just outside surrounding the city. Those mountains make it difficult to truck waste away and perfect to have compost operations to handle the organics. Let's dive into this great conversation with owner Andreas Ruiz, and operation manager Vincent Barrier of Regenera Organico.

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The cool video of their operation mentioned in the show!

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Community-Scale Composting in NYC with Domingo Morales of Compost Power NYC Aug 26, 2024

Show notes

Domingo Morales of Compost Power NYC was raised in New York City with little connection to nature until he was 22 years old and had a position at the Red Hook Farms through the Green City Force. That experience introduced him to farming, allowing him to see his connection to nature, and he developed compost fever. Domingo will tell you about his path into starting Compost Power NYC, which now has nine locations throughout New York City. Domingo's eye for management has led his sites to be model facilities. Domingo has a lot of experience with rats and has learned that a well-run compost operation does not have a problem with them. If you are concerned about rodents and compost, this is a great episode for you. Domingo's enthusiasm and care for his community is super contagious!

Mentioned in the show...

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The David Prize of NYC

Host Jayne's Earth Care Farm

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The Deep, Caring Process of Human Composting with Katrina Spade of Recompose Aug 19, 2024

Show notes

Wow, compost lovers, we made it to season three! Thank you. That's three years of compost love being shared and celebrated. This season is going to be awesome. It will be as wide and varied as the microbes in our piles. We'll be talking with composters of all scales, new technologies, legislation, science, and some about the second compost operation, my farm, Earth Care Farm, is opening up in the neighboring state of Connecticut. There are so many ways to make compost, diverse materials, and varied scales of operation. We need it all. Let's talk about all of it. Can you feel the momentum gaining? I can.

Speaking of diverse ingredients, what an honor to kick off the first episode of season three with Katrina Spade of Recompose. Recompose specializes in human composting. Yes, we are starting this season with human composting. Such a fascinating niche in our industry. Katrina talks about the incredibly thoughtful design process Recompose uses to help connect the general public to the reverence of composting. This is a deep, caring process, fully honoring the life of the one who passed and the loved ones left behind. Human composting isn't legal in all states yet, so you'll hear how Katrina helped get that legalized in Washington in 2019. It's now legal in seven states, but so far only happening in Washington and Colorado. In my state of Rhode Island, it hasn't passed yet, but seems like it will soon. Join me in this rich conversation with Katrina Spade.

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Composting in the Tough Climate of Alaska with Lisa Daugherty of Juneau Composts Oct 23, 2023

Show notes

When I was at the US Compost Conference last winter, I met Lisa of Juneau Composts and my 'cool gal' radar went off. Her vibe shouted competent. Lisa is the real deal, collecting food scraps and making compost with very little support in the tough climate of Alaska. It was fascinating to talk to Lisa about the struggles of composting in this harsh environment and her ingenuity. I've been following Juneau Composts for a few years, back when it was a one-woman, scrappy enterprise and I swell with pride every time I see a post about new employees or record collection amounts.

Contact Jayne at info@earthcarefarm.com

Follow Earth Care Farm on Instagram and YouTube

Folks who make this show possible...

Optimize commercial compost production while maintaining high-quality with Viably. Use our link here to learn more, get a consultation, and let them know we sent you.

The Culinary Breeding Network's Variety Showcase for plant breeders, seed growers, farmers, chefs, comsumers, and more, on October 16th in NY. GET TICKETS HERE!

High Country News is an independent, non-profit, publication covering the land, wildlife, and communities of the Western US for over 50+ years. Check them out using our link here.

The Marbleseed 5th Organic Farming Conference (formerly known as MOSES) is February 22-24, 2024.

The 131 School of & Community-Scale Composting with James McSweeney Oct 16, 2023

Show notes

James McSweeney, of The 131 School of Composting and author of Community-Scale Composting, and I jammed so well about what The 131 School is about—particularly the compost operators certificate program—his book, and his vision of composting in the future. James then turns the tables on me and asked me questions about Austria’s model of composting. At some point, we forgot we were being recorded, the conversation just flows until we remember we had prior engagements. Classic. I can’t get enough of the knowledgable composting community. We are learning so much from one another.

Contact Jayne at info@earthcarefarm.com

Follow Earth Care Farm on Instagram and YouTube

Folks who make this show possible...

Optimize commercial compost production while maintaining high-quality with Viably. Use our link here to learn more, get a consultation, and let them know we sent you.

The Culinary Breeding Network's Variety Showcase for plant breeders, seed growers, farmers, chefs, comsumers, and more, on October 16th in NY. GET TICKETS HERE!

High Country News is an independent, non-profit, publication covering the land, wildlife, and communities of the Western US for over 50+ years. Check them out using our link here.

The Marbleseed 5th Organic Farming Conference (formerly known as MOSES) is February 22-24, 2024.

Composting Lessons from Austria with Ursula, Gerald, & Karen Oct 09, 2023

Show notes

When Austria banned organics from the waste stream in '92, Ursula was--in part--tasked with how to divert organic waste from going to the landfill. In '96, she conducted an analysis of the waste stream. Yes, she personally dawned gloves and sorted through many samples of trash. 24% of her community's waste was organics (or what she calls "Biowaste"). Once she showed that data, and could project the savings that could be had, she had to figure out how to implement a plan to compost it. You'll get to hear how upper Austria has some of the cleanest streams of biowaste heading to farm composters, with Gerald and Karen, composting on a family farm.

Mentioned in the show...

Photos (via Google Drive)

Folks who make this show possible...

Optimize commercial compost production while maintaining high-quality with Viably. Use our link here to learn more, get a consultation, and let them know we sent you.

The Culinary Breeding Network's Variety Showcase for plant breeders, seed growers, farmers, chefs, comsumers, and more, on October 16th in NY. GET TICKETS HERE!

High Country News is an independent, non-profit, publication covering the land, wildlife, and communities of the Western US for over 50+ years. Check them out using our link here.

The Marbleseed 5th Organic Farming Conference (formerly known as MOSES) is February 22-24, 2024.

Decentralized Composting in Austria with Verena of 3-er Hof Farm & Florian of the ISWA Oct 02, 2023

Show notes

On our International Solid Waste Association study tour on decentralized bio waste recycling—or just the compost scene—in Austria, we visited 3-er Hof Farm, Farm 3, and spoke with second generation composter Verena. Her families farm is an inspiring mix of compost production, crop production, and social connection with people of all abilities and ages. Instead of an interview, I recorded the lecture given at Farm 3. You’ll hear from Verena about Farm 3 and then from Florian, who organized the study tour, about how compost collection works. It’s a system of collecting and processing that works well in a semi-rural area.

Find out more about Earth Care Farm and follow Jayne's work...

Guest/topic recommendations -> info@earthcarefarm.com

Follow Earth Care Farm on Instagram

Subscribe to Earth Care Farm on YouTube

Mentioned in the show...

2023_ISWA_ST-Biowaste_Booklet.pdf

Folks who make this show possible...

Optimize commercial compost production while maintaining high-quality with Viably. Use our link here to learn more, get a consultation, and let them know we sent you.

The Culinary Breeding Network's Variety Showcase for plant breeders, seed growers, farmers, chefs, comsumers, and more, on October 16th in NY. GET TICKETS HERE!

High Country News is an independent, non-profit, publication covering the land, wildlife, and communities of the Western US for over 50+ years. Check them out using our link here.

The Marbleseed 5th Organic Farming Conference (formerly known as MOSES) is February 22-24, 2024.

A Deep & Fertile Conversation with Karl Hammer of Vermont Compost Sep 25, 2023

Show notes

Most of you all know and love Karl Hammer from Vermont Compost (IG VermontCompost) already. If you’re looking for a concise “how-to” guide on how Karl makes his awesome compost, and even better known potting soil, this is not that interview. Karl is known for his verbose and winding stories that mostly answer the question given, but always entertain. There is a richness in speaking with someone like Karl with a lifetime of experience. So, prepare yourself for a deep and fertile conversation full of expert level nuggets

Find out more about Earth Care Farm and follow Jayne's work...

Guest/topic recommendations -> info@earthcarefarm.com

Follow Earth Care Farm on Instagram

Subscribe to Earth Care Farm on YouTube

Mentioned in the show...

Farmers of Forty Centuries by F. H. King

The Physics of Agriculture by F. H. King

The 131 School of Composting

The Bionutrient Food Association

Folks who make this show possible...

Optimize commercial compost production while maintaining high-quality with Viably. Use our link here to learn more, get a consultation, and let them know we sent you.

The Culinary Breeding Network's Variety Showcase for plant breeders, seed growers, farmers, chefs, comsumers, and more, on October 16th in NY. GET TICKETS HERE!

High Country News is an independent, non-profit, publication covering the land, wildlife, and communities of the Western US for over 50+ years. Check them out using our link here.

Xsense provides home safety and environmental monitoring products for your peace of mind.

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