Each month, we will highlight community heroes that are making a difference in their communities and working to make their local environments cleaner and healthier.
This month, we are taking a look at Cero Cooperative in MA!
Cero Cooperative is a composting service that composts the food scraps they collect at local, family-owned farms, replenishing soil to heal the planet based in Dorchester, MA. Biobag Associate spoke to Casey Lynch with Cero about the organization. Their interview is transcribed below.
What led you to start your composting operation?
CERO was founded by African American and Latinx entrepreneurs rooted in the environmental justice communities of Dorchester and Roxbury, MA. Determined to provide an alternative to unacceptable wages and working conditions, CERO’s founders joined forces with the MassCOSH Immigrant Workers Center and the Boston Workers Alliance to create a worker-owned zero waste enterprise in 2013.
Who do you serve and how can people get in touch with you if they want to start composting?
CERO is a commercial composting cooperative that serves businesses in Greater Boston looking to recycle their organic waste for its highest and best use. We collect businesses’ food waste and haul it to local, family-owned farms, where it is turned into nutrient-rich compost soil. We then deliver this finished soil to growers throughout Greater Boston, creating a closed loop in which yesterday’s waste works to grow tomorrow’s food. CERO’s organic waste recycling customers include universities, healthcare facilities, food processors, caterers, restaurants, breweries, indoor growers and more. Feel free to contact us here to learn more about how we can make your business great at composting!
How much organic material do you typically take in on a weekly basis?
CERO typically harvests and transports nearly 100 tons of food waste to farms in Greater Boston on a weekly basis.
Feel free to add any additional information about your operation as you see fit.
CERO is very proud to be a worker-owned cooperative! A worker-owned cooperative differs from a traditional business in that all workers have the potential to become owners of the business after a cooperative education process. Additionally, CERO is proud to adhere to the seven cooperative principles, participate in democratic decision making, and pay all of our employees a living wage. When you choose to work with CERO you choose not only to regenerate our earth, but also to provide dignified work to members of our Greater Boston community.
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