City Of Wixom To Begin Curbside Food Scraps Collection

The city of Wixom will begin allowing food scraps to be included in seasonal curbside yard waste with the Food Scrap Recycling program. This includes bacon grease, moldy refrigerator items, blackened banana peels, and more. They can now go in yard waste bags or containers placed at the curb each week in Wixom.

The Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy (EGLE) highlighted Wixom's program, which debuted the first week of April. They put the spotlight on the program as part of its statewide plan to reduce the amount of food waste in landfills and Food Waste Prevention Week.

According to EGLE, landfilled food is one of the biggest sources of methane, a key driver of climate change. They also mentioned that more than two billion pounds of food go to Michigan landfills each year.

Wixom residents are now able to place all kinds of food items, even meat, bones, fats, and grease, in their curbside yard waste bags or cans. Residents can also include items like eggshells, coffee grinds and filters, and paper napkins and paper towels if they don’t have cleaning solutions on them.

"These scraps like your yard waste will be composted and used in gardens and city projects, thus creating healthy, nutrient-rich soil and cleaner air," said the city of Wixom on Facebook.

Not everyone in Wixom seems thrilled about the program. "This sounds like a disaster in the making!! We don't have enough critters invading our garbage?? We want to attract MORE?!," one person said. "Separate containers would make a 'little' sense but I don't understand this idea? Explain??," someone asked. Another person said, "The smell of the huge compost pile I can see from my backyard is only going to get worse. It is now taller than the trees. It already is terrible most days in the summer."

Many others also expressed concern about odor throughout the city and attracting critters.

A similar program is taking place in Southfield. Make Food Not Waste, along with 17 local and national partners, is creating a detailed plan that incorporates all of the best practices in food waste reduction from around the country. The plan will include recommendations for source reduction, food rescue, upcycling, and organics recycling.

By early fall, the group will have a detailed map outlining the communication, infrastructure, and logistical needs to divert all of Southfield's food waste to alternate uses detailed in EGLE’s Sustainable Food Hierarchy. With that in place, the plan can be replicated in other highly populated cities, they said.

More information about the program can be found here.