Curbside Food Scraps Collection
Reduce Household Waste by Up to 30%! Sign up for curbside food scraps collection—fruit peels, bones, coffee grounds, and more are picked up and transformed into nutrient-rich compost by Black Earth Compost. For more information, call (508) 979-1493, text (774) 503-0254, or email marissa@gnbrrmdistrict.org.
What’s Accepted in This Curbside Collection?
Black Earth Compost is a commercial composting company that collects a wide variety of organic materials—including items not typically accepted in backyard compost bins. This includes dairy, meat, bones, food-soiled paper products, and certified compostable tableware.
Here are examples of items accepted in this curbside collection:
Food Scraps:
- Fruits & vegetables (remove produce stickers)
- Coffee grounds & filters
- Eggshells
- Meat & seafood (including lobster shells)
- Pasta, grains, & bread
- Nut & coconut shells
Other Compostables:
- Food-soiled napkins
- Paper towels
- Certified compostable tableware
Click here for a printable list and collection tips from Black Earth Compost.
Click here for printable party signage.
🔗 Click here for more information from Black Earth Compost or 📞 call Black Earth Compost (978) 290-4610 (option 1).
New Bedford Residents
Flyers
How can I participate?
Click here for the Black Earth Compost website. On their website, scroll down to the white rectangle under, “Enter your address for residential curbside composting pick-up.” Pre-register to help bring the program to your neighborhood. A minimum number of residents must participate to start the program.
New Bedford residents who pay for this service will have their food scraps picked up at their home by Black Earth Compost either once a week or every other week.
The cost in New Bedford for weekly pickup is $21.99 per month or $119.99 for 6 months of service. The cost of every other week pickup is $17.99 per month or $94.99 for 6 months of service. The program follows a tiered pricing structure; the fees go down as more customers register.
Free Starter Kits
The Refuse District is sponsoring starter kits for the first 100 new participants who are New Bedford residents. The free starter kit includes the following:
- a 13-gallon wheeled curbside cart and one roll of BPI-certified compostable bags to line the cart ($36.00 value)
- a 2-gallon kitchen bin and a roll of BPI-certified compostable bags to line the kitchen bin.
Dartmouth Residents
Press Release
Click here for the press release.
How can I participate?
Click here for the Black Earth Compost website. On their website, scroll down to the white rectangle under, “Enter your address for residential curbside composting pick-up.” Register if collection service has started in your area or pre-register to help bring the program to your neighborhood. A minimum number of residents must be pre-registered for collection service to expand to different areas.
Dartmouth residents who pay for this service will have their food scraps picked up at their home by Black Earth Compost either once a week or every other week.
The cost in Dartmouth for weekly pickup is $20.99 per month or $114.99 for 6 months of service. The cost of every other week pickup is $16.99 per month or $89.99 for 6 months of service. The program follows a tiered pricing structure; the fees go down as more customers register.
Free Starter Kits
The Refuse District is sponsoring starter kits for the first 50 new participants who are SMART Program customers. This includes new customers in the currently active service area and new customers in areas where Black Earth adds collection service. The free starter kit includes a 13-gallon wheeled curbside cart and one roll of BPI-certified compostable bags to line the cart ($36.00 value). The free starter kit will be delivered by Black Earth Compost. In addition, the District will make available, at no charge to SMART Program customers, a 2-gallon kitchen bin and a roll of BPI-certified compostable bags to line the kitchen bin. Dartmouth residents who are not part of the SMART Program will pay Black Earth a one-time fee of $36.00 for a 13-gallon wheeled curbside cart and one roll of BPI-certified compostable bags to line the cart.
What happens to the food scraps?
Black Earth Compost is a Massachusetts-based commercial composting company that converts the food scraps into nutrient-rich compost. Participating in this program keeps food scraps out of our local landfill and supports sustainable agriculture. Click here to learn more.
Can I get one bag of free compost by participating?
Yes! Customers will receive a voucher for a one cubic foot bag of finished compost each spring, redeemable at participating garden centers.
Free compost is also available for New Bedford and Dartmouth residents at the Crapo Hill landfill. Please note it’s not finely screened and may contain little sticks and small pieces of trash – we do our best to get these out but some sneak through the screen. The landfill is located at 300 Samuel Barnet Blvd, and open Monday – Friday 7:15 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. and Saturday 8:00 a.m. -10:45 a.m. Please go to the scale house first. It’s self-serve. Tip: Bring your own shovel and container. For more information, visit https://gnbrrmdistrict.org/yard-waste/.