Compost Guide

You can compost anything that is living or was once alive!

In Missoula, we have access to our city-owned industrial compost facility, Garden City Compost.  Using this technology, we can safely compost a wider variety of materials compared to backyard methods, including meat, dairy, small bones, and weeds. 

You cannot compost anything that might release toxins into the environment, such as chemical-soaked rags, plastics, heavy inks, and pet waste.

Quick Find

Food

ACCEPTED COMPOST

  • Veggetables

  • Fruits

  • Herbs

  • Seeds & pits (Large and small)

  • Coffee & Unbleached Coffee Filter

  • Tea & Natural Teabag

  • Grains

  • Yeasts

  • Eggs, Egg shells, egg cartons (labeling removed)

  • dairy (Milk, butter, etc.)

  • Meat (beef, pork, chicken, fish, seafood)

  • Small bones and seafood shells

  • Moldy or spoiled food (it’s already partway composted!)

  • Dirty napkins

  • dirty cardboard (pizza boxes, food boats)

  • Certified compostable servingware (bioplastic, bamboo, sugarcane, etc.)

Not Compostable

All food is industrially compostable, however, some accompanying items are not

  • Produce Stickers

  • Glue or labeling

  • fryer oil

  • Wax (no waxed cardboard or cups)

  • Synthetic material (no shiny synthetic tea bags)

Accepted

  • Fruit, veggies, and herbs

    All seeds, stems, husks, pits, and skins are great for compost!

    Please remove any produce stickers

  • Eggs

    Including whole egg (if spoiled), shells, and cartons.

    Please remove any labeling from the carton.

  • Dairy

    Dairy

    All types of dairy are accepted.

    While not recommended for backyard composting, sustained heat produced from industrial composting kills all pathogens and bad bacteria that may otherwise form.

  • Meat

    All kinds of meat, including fish and seafood, are compostable.

    Small bones and seafood shells are also compostable.

    While not recommended for backyard composting, sustained heat produced from industrial composting kills all pathogens and bad bacteria that may otherwise form.

  • Moldy or Spoiled food

    If your food is already moldy, it has already started to compost! It is perfect for your compost bin.

  • Grains and Yeast

    All grains and yeast are compostable, including beer ferments, kombucha discards, and other natural grain materal.

  • Sugars

    All desserts are compostable.

    Please don’t compost any fryer oil.

    Bernice's Bakery

  • Tea

    All tea is compostable. Most tea bags are compostable. Staples and label are okay. Magnets are used to remove any metal in compost.

    Please don’t compost silky shiney strong tea bags as they are likley sythetic.

    Yerba Montana Tea

  • Coffee

    All beans are compostable. Coffee is wonderful to have in compost! Most coffee filters are also compostable.

    Please don’t compost bleached or synthetic coffee filters.

  • Certified Compostable Servingware

    Certified bioplastics, bamboo, sugarcane, and other natural materials are compostable in an industrial facility.

    Learn More

Not Compostable

  • No Produce Stickers

    These are plastic and will not break down in the compost process.

  • No Fryer Oil

    Excess oil is not accepted in compost, however, things that have been fried, such as doughnuts or french fries, can be composted.

  • No Wax

    Wax or wax-coated items, such as cheese casings, shiny cardboard or coated cups, are not accepted in compost.

    Light coatings on products such as cucumbers and apples are acceptable .

Packaging

ACCEPTED Compost

  • Pizza Boxes

  • Egg cartons

  • Dirty napkins

  • Paper bags

  • dirty cardboard (100% paper food boats and cardboard with food residue

  • BPI or TUV Certified compostable servingware (bioplastic, bamboo, sugarcane, etc.)

Not Compostable

  • Milk cartons

  • Wax-coated cardboard (will be slick)

  • Foil-coated paper

  • Plastic wrappers

  • Petroleum-based plastics (#1-#6)

  • #7 plastic that is not BPI or TUV certified

  • “Biodegradable”, “Eco-Friendly”, or other claims not supported with a BPI or TUV compost certification

Accepted

  • Egg Cartons

    Please remove any labeling from the carton.

  • Pizza Boxes

    Pizza Boxes

    Pizza boxes and other 100% paper products with food residue or otherwise unfit for recycling is compostable.

  • napkins

    All napkins are compostable if not heavily inked.

  • Certified Compostable

    100% paper products or certified compostable serving boxes and utensils are compostable.

    Please do not compost anything with a wax or plastic lining. If inside is smooth and shiny, inside is likely plastic-coated.

    Learn More

  • bio plastics

    Certified bioplastics, bamboo, sugarcane, and other natural materials are compostable in an industrial facility.

    The Loose Caboose, Five on Black, Bernice’s Bakery, Market on Front, Tandem Bakery, and Green Source are among several businesses around town with compostable serving ware.

    Learn More

Not Compostable

  • No cardboard cartons

    These cartons contain plastics and wax lining that cannot be composted. Please look for recycling options.

  • No Wrappers

    Wrappers are made of plastic, that cannot be composted

  • No unlabled to-go cointainers

    Any container not labeled or certified as compostable should be assumed non-compostable, as many are lined with plastics.

    Learn More

  • No Petroleum Plastics

    Any #1-#6 plastics are not acceptable plastics. #7 plastics are only compostable if labled with a BPI or TUV certification.

  • No Wax coated paper

    Many messy food items are lined with a wax-coated paper. If the paper is smooth and slippery, it is likely embedded with wax. Please do not compost wax-coated paper.

  • No foil or foil-lined paper

    Many warm food are served with foil lined paper. These papers are not compostable.

Compostable servingware

ACCEPTED Certifications

certified compostable means an item has been tested to completely breakdown, leaving no residues, after 90 days in the heated and microbial conditions of a commercial compost facility.

Not Certifications

Biodegradeable does not mean compostable.

  • “Biodegradable”

  • “Degradeable”

  • “Decomposable”

  • “made from PLANTs”

Accepted

  • BPI Certifiaction

    BPI (Biodegradable Products Institute) certified compostable is the gold standard for compostable disposables.

    The BPI Certification process is rigorous and ensures that items can be safely cycled back into the soil at a commercial composting facility. BPI tests through ASTM standards and applies additional restrictions on carcinogens and fluorinated chemicals.

    Learn about BPI

  • TUV certifications

    TUV is the European standard for composting. It is the only other acceptable compost certification.

    “HOME” and “INDUSTRIAL” are both accepted.

    This label guarantees safe biodegradability in an industrial composting plant. This applies to all of their components, inks and additives.

    Learn about TUV

  • Identification TIps

    There are a few common markings that will hint that a compostable product is in your hands.

    Has a certification logo from BPI or TUV

    Labeled with the word “compostable”

    Colored, tinted, or striped green, beige, or brown.

    No use of the chasing arrow or other recycling symbols.

    Compostable Labeling

NOT Certifications

  • Biodegradable

    Biodegradable means an item will break down in an undisclosed amount of time, it could be a day or 100 years.

    It also does not gaurentee no resedues or toxins are left behind.

    BIODEGRADABLE DOES NOT EQUAL COMPOSTABLE

  • #7 Plastic

    #7 plastic is a catch-all for “other” plastics. It is difficult to define and even harder to recycle.

    Compostable material is not recyclable, and recyclable material is not compostable. #7 Plastics can blur this line.

    Please be certain that all composted #7 plastics have a BPI or TUV certification accompanying them.

  • Green Seal

    Like other eco-friendly certifications, Green Seal is good, but it does not mean compostable.

    Green Seal verifies that certified products have achieved significant waste minimization across the product lifecycle.

    This and other eco-friendly or cruelty-free certifications allude to other waste reduction and product manufacturing goals.

  • Avoid Greenwashing

    Greenwashing is misinformation advertised by an organization so as to present an environmentally responsible public image.

    Avoid vague terms like “Eco-friendly”, “Green”, and “Biodegradable.”

    Avoid vague symbols mimicking compost brands like green leaves, vines, and other random elements, alluding to nature.

    No certification.

    In the example above, recyclable and biodegradable contradict each other. This is neither a recyclable nor a compostable cup.

    If you have to search hard to find a clear answer, don’t trust it.

    Learn More

Office Supplies

ACCEPTED Compost

  • Coffee grounds (w/ most filters)

  • Bamboo coffee stirrers

  • Teabags (unless silky-plastic, staples okay)

  • All food waste (including bones, dairy)

  • Napkins & paper towels

  • Disposable servingware marked “compostable” such as cups, plates, and flatware (“biodegradable” doesn’t count!)

  • Pizza Boxes

  • Paper Napkins (not heavily dyed)

  • Bills and other documents you've shredded

  • Envelopes (minus the plastic window)

  • Pencil shavings

  • Sticky notes

  • Business cards (as long as they're not glossy)

  • Plant material trimmed from office plants

Not Compost

  • Sugar packet wrappers

  • Wrappers from sub sandwich shops, Cliff Bars, etc.

  • Paper coffee cups (unless marked “compostable”)

  • Paper cartons (juice, half-n-half)

  • Stickers (remove from fruit peels)

  • Teabag wrappers

Accepted

  • All Food

    Including dairy and animal products.

    Nuts, shells, and seeds.

    Stems, pits, peels of all fruits and vegetables.

    Composting Food

  • Tea & Coffee

    Please don’t compost silky or shiny tea bags or coffee filters, as they are likely synthetic.

    Check out our friends at Yerba Montana! Great tea and great people.

    Yerba Montana Tea

  • Plant Material

    All plant trimmings or forgotten plants can be composted. Roots, dirt, seeds, and all.

  • Compostable Servingware

    The Loose Caboose, Five on Black, Market on Front, Tandem Bakery, and Green Source are among several businesses around town with compostable serving ware.

    BPI and TUV-certified serving ware is compostable. Identify with green stripe around products and other compostable labeling. See “Compostables” to learn more.

    Composting Servingware

  • Paper Products

    Any paper product is compostable, including envelopes, printer paper, shredded paper, sticky notes, business cards, and newspaper.

    Please remove all plastic windows and stamps.

    Note: Waste management best practice advises recycling before composting. Only compost if an item is no longer fit for recycling streams.

NOT Certifications

  • Stickers & Stamps

    Address stickers and stamps must be removed from paper before composting.

    Sticky notes are okay because the amount of adhesive is low. Ink-stamped material is okay (with a rubber stamp).

  • Heavily inked material

    Material that has been heavily inked or dyed is not acceptable compost. If more than 50% of the page is ink-covered, do not compost.

    This includes magazines or fully saturated printer paper.

  • Glossy paper

    Any glossy material is not acceptable compost. This includes magazines, glossy business cards, glossy receipt paper, etc.

    Gloss indicates wax or plastic, both a contaminants to compost.

Lawn & Garden

ACCEPTED Compost

  • Cut Grass

  • Fallen leaves

  • garden material (stocks and stems)

  • Fallen fruit

  • Deadhead flowers

  • Weeds

  • pine needles/cones

  • tree limbs

  • unpainted pallet boards

Not Compost

  • Sod

  • dirt

  • ash

  • pet waste

  • treated lumber

  • synthetic fertilizer

Accepted

  • Cut Grass

    Layer cut grass with wood or pine cones to promote aeration and reduce decomposing odors.

  • Weeds

    Industrial composting gets hot enough for long enough to kill all weed seeds present in compost.

  • unpainted Pallet Boards

    Any untreated lumber can be composted. Nails in boards or other woods are okay as a magnet is utlized during the composting process to remove all metals.

  • Yard Litter

    Leaves, pine cones, pine needles, twigs and branches, and any other natural debris is compostable.

  • Garden Debris

    Stocks, stems, fallen fruit, animal eaten, and other debris can be composted

    Harbor Hibernators

Not Compost

  • Pet Waste

    Pet waste is not compostable as it may contain harmful pathogens, parasites, or chemicals that are difficult to account for if not treated.

    Pet Waste Concerns

  • Ash

    Ash is a fire hazard.

  • Sod or Dirt

    These items are too heavy to collect for compost and may damage hauling equipment

Celebrations

ACCEPTED Compost

  • Jack o’lanterns

  • Christmas trees

  • Natural wrapping paper

  • jute

  • burlap

  • fresh cut flowers

  • Raffia

  • certified compostable wrapping paper

Not Compost

  • Ribbon

  • shiny and inked wrapping paper

  • wax

  • paint

  • tape

  • glue

  • glitter

  • ballons

Accepted

  • Jack O'Lanterns

    Please remove any paint or spilled wax.

  • Christmas Trees

    Our truck’s hydraulic system is strong enough to break down an average-sized Christmas tree.

  • Cut Flowers

    Pesticides and fertilizers used on cut flowers are washed away in the compost process.

  • Natural Wrapping Material

    Ribbon made of: Raffia, burlap, or jute are compostable.

    Wrapping Paper: Newspaper or parcel paper is compostable.

    Decoration: Dried or fresh flowers, berries, and foliage are compostable

Not Compost

  • Glitter

  • Glossy Paper

  • Ribbon

  • Tape

  • Stickers

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