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 Green Heron Compost in TN!
Green Heron Compost is a composting service based in Knoxville, TN that does residential, commercial, and event composting. Biobag Associate spoke to Kat McDearis, Owner of Green Heron Compost Services, about the organization. Their interview is transcribed below.
What led you to start your composting operation?
I started Green Heron Compost because I was living in a small apartment in downtown Knoxville and tried to start composting. After some research, I realized that there wasn’t any sort of composting option in Knoxville at that time. Since my wife is a soil scientist, I decided I would use her expertise to try and start a small composting operation. After almost a year of prep and testing, I launched Green Heron Compost Services using my small sedan until I got enough customers to afford a pickup truck. Luckily, business took off from there!
Who do you serve and how can people get in touch with you if they want to start composting?
We serve Knox County residents and businesses by providing curbside food waste collection services. From there, the waste is processed at our farm facility where it becomes high-quality compost. If someone would like to start composting with us, they can visit our website www.greenheroncompost.com and sign up by registering their address.
How much organic material do you typically take in on a weekly basis?
We are currently diverting about 1-2 tons of organic waste per week and that number continues to grow each month.
Feel free to add any additional information about your operation as you see fit.
Unlike most store-bought compost mixes, our premium compost is a concentrated fertilizer that is meticulously crafted from food scraps and other organic matter. Instead of rushing the final product, we let our finished compost cure for at least 2 months so it can age to perfection.
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