The City of Portage is partnering with My Green Michigan to debut a Food Scraps Recycling pilot program, beginning the week of January 6, 2025. Citizens can easily recycle food scraps using a container at home, such as a lidded bowl, compostable bag, plastic container, countertop bin, or 5-gallon bucket. Citizens can then visit one of the ten convenient drop-off sites and deposit scraps into the 64-gallon lime green bins provided. My Green Michigan will empty the collection bins every other Tuesday, beginning Tuesday, January 21, 2025.
The program, provided to Portage citizens at no additional fee, is tailored to turn food scraps into rich, nutrient-dense soil for the environment. Diverting food waste to composting has additional benefits, including reducing pollution and landfill waste, and lowering methane emissions. This pilot program is a part of the city鈥檚 continuous efforts toward sustainability. 聽鈥淧ortage has always been committed to innovative ways to protect our environment,鈥� said City Manager Pat McGinnis. 鈥淭his pilot program is an exciting opportunity to reduce waste and create a more sustainable future for our community.鈥�
鈥淢y Green Michigan has a mission to prove that working together, we can do enough to combat wastefulness,鈥� said My Green Michigan partner Cliff Walkington. “My Green Michigan is thrilled to provide the City of Portage with our food waste recycling services, offering businesses, and now residents, a convenient and effective way to divert their food scraps to composting. We are proud to already have customers who compost with us in the area, and the addition of a drop-off program is a great way to improve recycling efforts and support sustainable businesses. This partnership with the City of Portage offers a proven path for communities to introduce food waste diversion. We are grateful for a collaborative partnership with the City of Portage and are eager to continue working together and increasing food waste diversion in Southwest Michigan.鈥�
Walkington added that 鈥渋f it grows, it goes,鈥� noting that acceptable items include fruits, vegetables, coffee grounds/filters and tea bags, bread and grains, dairy products, meat and bones, and chemical-free paper towels and napkins.