Expanding Organics Recycling Access With Food Scrap Drop-Off Programs

Across the United States, cities are rethinking how residents access food waste recycling. With landfill space tightening, hauling costs rising and food scraps making up more than one quarter of the national trash stream, communities are looking for practical ways to expand diversion without the heavy operational burden of curbside collection. Secure, community-based drop-off programs are providing residents with 24/7 access to organics collection, supported by clean, controlled and data-driven infrastructure.

Why Drop-Off Programs Are Gaining Ground

For many cities, curbside food waste collection remains difficult to implement. Costs rise quickly, contamination is hard to control and apartment residents often have nowhere to store carts but drop-off programs offer an interesting alternative. When supported by secure access, clear signage and consistent outreach, they deliver clean material, low operating costs and high user satisfaction.

Case studies across the country show why the model is catching on.

• In Manchester, CT, access-controlled F-Series enclosures helped the town divert more than 15 tons of food scraps in the first year, with contamination kept to a minimum and participation growing week by week. A fully data-driven approach allowed staff to refine locations, monitor volumes and adjust operations without the complexity of curbside expansion.
• In Hailey, ID, a rural community challenged by distance, climate and limited budgets, the city built a fully community-driven system with keypad and app access. Five drop-off points now serve nearly 10,000 residents, proving that rural organics diversion can be low-cost, resilient and user-friendly.
• In Northern Wisconsin, Big Lake Organics transformed an unmanaged composting site plagued by trash and pests into a clean, reliable subscription-based network by installing metroSTOR enclosures across key community locations. Contamination dropped to zero, participation grew and residents embraced a simple rural alternative to curbside service.

From Washington, DC to West Hartford, CT, cities are also turning to smart, access-controlled cart enclosures as an affordable way to begin organics diversion at scale before committing to long-term curbside investment. Early results show that when the barrier to participation is removed, residents respond.

Upcoming Webinar

The upcoming session will bring together practitioners who have built these systems from the ground up. They will discuss:

• How access-controlled drop-off networks reduce contamination and keep collection costs manageable
• Funding pathways that cities have used, including climate action millages, state grants and ARPA funds
• Placement strategies that maximize participation and community visibility
• How data enables better decision-making, from refining routes to planning future curbside services
• Lessons learned around outreach, user behaviour, ADA considerations and technology adoption
• How these programs support circularity goals by feeding composting infrastructure and reducing hauling emissions

A National Shift, Dependent On The Right Infrastructure

Food waste remains the single largest material category in U.S. landfills, driving methane emissions more potent than carbon dioxide and contributing significantly to disposal costs. Yet cities are proving that progress does not require complex programs or high budgets. Simple, secure, well-placed drop-off infrastructure can empower thousands of households at once.

Cities are starting to focus on making participation easy, keeping collection areas clean and secure and providing access for apartments and households without space for a curbside cart. Technology is used to track engagement, maintain material quality and guide future expansion, while programs are designed to grow in a way that does not overwhelm municipal operations. This is how communities lay the groundwork for larger systems, whether that becomes expanded drop-off networks, hybrid models or full curbside collection in years ahead.

Join the Conversation

The U.S. organics landscape is evolving quickly and cities are looking to each other for practical roadmaps. The upcoming metroSTOR webinar will offer a rare opportunity to hear first-hand from teams that have already implemented successful, community-anchored systems.

Their experiences show that accessible design, secure infrastructure and thoughtful rollout strategies can transform food scrap recycling, even in places where curbside programs are infeasible or unaffordable.

If your municipality, organisation or consultancy is exploring ways to increase food waste diversion, this session will provide the real-world insight needed to move from plans to practice.

Sign up now!