What paper is good to compost?

It’s tricky to know when paper is compostable or not… is the ink non-toxic? Is there a plastic liner embedded in there somewhere?

I’d like to focus on compostable takeout containers- I’ve noticed more restaurants using them lately.

Sweetgreen makes a tasty (pricey) salad, and they’ve recently gone halfway and made the bowl compostable (lid is plastic).

I’m nearly certain it doesn’t contain a thin plastic lining, and I’ve been putting them in the compost.

The key to make it work is to rip it up the best you can; and second, it makes excellent worm bedding while creating little air pockets in the pile.

This stuff doesn’t compost quickly, so expect it to be around a bit… rip it up!

Ice cream cartons are very thick and have obvious plastic layers embedded- don’t add those.

I used to do this and it was stupid of me- It’s easy to remove the plastic skeletons left behind, but I know that I broke some up into smaller pieces simply by turning my compost.

The raw paper looking containers are usually a go, but try to look for composting certifications on the item for clues

While I’m at it, another quick reminder: if you shred confidential documents at home, keep the plastic envelope windows out and add those to your pile, too.

The shredded paper is way to small to make it through the single stream recycling sorting machinery.

Composting your shredded paper makes use out of the material, as opposed to hitting the landfill (or worse getting incinerated).

If you have any questions, contact me here or on Instagram at @thecompostnerd.

With recycling in the toilet these days, taking the extra effort to compost as much as possible goes a long way.

Have some fun with it. 🙂