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Plant Based Products Council Commends Introduction of COMPOST Act
July 16, 2021
WASHINGTON, DC —The Plant Based Products Council (PBPC) commends Representatives Julia Brownley (D–CA-26), Chellie Pingree (D-ME-01), and Ann Kuster (D-NH-02) for introducing the Cultivating Organic Matter through the Promotion of Sustainable Techniques (COMPOST) Act in the U.S. House of Representatives, and introduced by Senator Cory Booker in the U.S. Senate.
The COMPOST Act helps meet the growing demand from individuals and businesses to compost food scraps and certified compostable packaging. Assisting the transition to a circular economy, the COMPOST Act would create new USDA grant and loan guarantee programs for composting infrastructure projects, including both large-scale composting facilities as well as farm, home, or community-based projects. The bill also would add composting as a conservation practice for USDA conservation programs. Both the act of producing compost from organic waste and using compost on a farm would qualify as conservation practices. This bill addresses a critical need for communities around the country looking to expand access to food waste composting, an important step to help lead the shift to net-zero.
“Increased investment in composting infrastructure will provide thousands of new jobs, and enhance agriculture’s leadership in addressing climate challenges. For example, infrastructure created by the COMPOST Act, along with increased adoption of compostable, plant-based materials, can help keep food waste out of landfills and reduce accompanying greenhouse gas emissions,” said Jessica Bowman, Executive Director of the Plant Based Products Council. PBPC is a member of the U.S. Composting Infrastructure Coalition, working to support innovative and responsible waste reduction and recovery solutions like composting.
Composting supports our environment and communities with its numerous economic and environmental benefits. For example, composting facilities are estimated to sustain more jobs than landfills or incinerators. Increasing composting facilities would support local jobs and local, healthy food production.
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The Plant Based Products Council (PBPC) is a group of like-minded organizations working to guide the global economy toward more sustainable and responsible consumer products and packaging through greater use of plant-based materials. Learn more at https://pbpc.com/
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