Startup business introduces premium compost

CNY Business Journal (1996+), Sep 10, 1999 by D, Suzanne

locally produced premium compost was recently introduced in several garden and grocery stores. The product, called Toad Hollow Farms Natural Compost, comes in 0.5 cubic-foot bags.

The product is the result of a collaboration between farmer William Guptill and a startup company, Waste Not Resource Solutions (WNRS). Brian Jerose and Darren Kupinsky are partners in the company. They started two years ago to put together the business plan that has resulted in recycling, producing, and now marketing the compost.

It is sold in local feed stores, grocery stores, food cooperatives, and farm markets. Customers may also purchase the compost in bag or bulk at the Guptill Farm on Tanner Road in South Onondaga. Local landscape companies are also using the product in bulk as a soil builder.

Jerose and Kupinsky have been involved in resource management and composting since 1993. The two met while serving in AmeriCorps and have since worked on composting and recycling projects in New Hampshire, Vermont, and New York. Jerose, a Syracuse native, returned here in 1997 to attend graduate school at the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry (SUNY ESF) and work for Environmental Fertilization Corp. parttime. The two recognized the opportunity for composting in CNY and after approaching several farms began this current project with William Guptill.

Cooperating with Guptill provided the land, equipment, and labor to handle incoming materials and to mix it until nature produces the finished product. WNRS provided the administrative and marketing arm of the operation. The site needed a permit from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, as compost sites are regulated and have specific requirements for drainage, site management and testing of the finished product before it can be sold. WNRS prepared the permit application and found sources of food scraps and other partners to make the logistics of the project work.

A $75,000 New York State Department of Economic Development (NYSDED) matching -grant allowed for the lease of additional equipment, cost-sharing on services, and suppl ies. The grant will demonstrate the economic feasibility of on-farm food-scraps composting, with the goal of being a model for New York State communities.

Since July 1998, Wegmans stores have sent about 500 tons per year of food scraps from its produce, bakery, floral, and food-court departments. The tip fee ranges from $25 to $35 per ton. The Food Bank, Peter's Groceries, Price Chopper, Syracuse University, landscapers, farms, and other businesses are current and future Toad Hollow Farms clients.

The recipe for this compost differs from those usually available. Jerose says, "Most compost is good, but this is premium compost." It contains institutional food scraps, farm manure, and a bulking agent of ground leaves and wood chips. The initial source of leaves and wood chips was the Town of Onondaga. The site also helped the community by taking in 10,000 cubic yards of ground brush from last year's Labor Day storm.

For the individual, the compost is great for houseplants, flower beds and gardens, lawns, and transplants. For the long term, Jerose sees the product as a basic in organic farming. Organic fanning uses no chemical pesticides or fertilizers. By providing compost and acting as an example, Toad Hollow Farms expects to expand the opportunities for local organic farming. The farm will soon offer a bagged potting soil and composted wood mulch.

Guptill Farms currently uses about half the product on the 300-plus acres it farms in corn and grains. Guptill also raises beef cattle and dairy heifers. The fourth-generation family farm is in the Organic Certification process. In the meantime, Guptill has eliminated the spreading of raw manure and substitutes his own compost product.

Several other businesses have assisted Toad Hollow in its development and initial implementation stage. W.F. Saunders and Son Concrete allows haulers to weigh at their facility, which is en route to the farm. Northbrook Farms in Weedsport is bagging the product. So far, 5,000 bags have gone to market. Jerose cites a host of other public agencies and private companies that have helped the three in getting started. They include Wegmans; Peter's Groceries; Cornell Waste Management Institute; Town of Onondaga; Capital Environmental Haulers; Environmental and Resource. Engineering Consultants; Onondaga County; SUNY ESF; Put it in Print Promotions; New York State Association for Reduction, Reuse, and Recycling; NYSDED; and the Onondaga County Resource Recovery Agency (OCRRA).

OCRRA has an established policy favoring composting over other forms of disposal such as landfilling or incineration. Food-scrap composting represents a cost-saving approach for businesses and institutions. Four hundred tons of material diverted by OCRRA through its composting policy represents savings of over $20,000 to the businesses generating the waste.

Jerose predicts new customers looking for savings if sewer charges go up. At that point, institutions that are using grinders and waste disposals may find Toad Hollow or another such compost outlet a cheaper alternative.