4 Tips for Composting in Your Kitchen

If you're concerned about the amount of waste produced in your kitchen, it's important to consider more than just how much paper that you throw away. Studies have found that 184 calories of food per person is wasted in the United States on a daily basis. This means that every day we throw away enough food to give every man, woman and child in the country a healthy snack.

Even if you shop smart and do what you can to not over purchase, food waste is unavoidable in the kitchen; however, you can be smarter about the way that you dispose of kitchen waste. Kitchen composting allows you to put your food waste to good use and can make landscaping more affordable.

Here are four kitchen composting tips to help you get started:

1. Choose a container. To make kitchen composting easy, you need the right container. The simplest solution is to purchase a ready-made kitchen composting bin, which is designed to control odors. You can also use a 5-gallon bucket with a lid; just be sure to line it with newspaper or sawdust to absorb odors. A final option is to fill a recycled plastic re-sealable bag with your composting and keep it in the refrigerator.

2. Prepare waste properly. Composting is more successful when food waste is properly prepared. Food scraps will break down more quickly when they are in smaller pieces, so mash, slice or chop up produce before adding it to your bin, bucket or basket.

3. Keep stirring! You'll want to stir, shake or swirl your composting container once per day. This helps to encourage the break down of foods.

4. Empty regularly. Letting kitchen composting linger for more than a week can lead to foul odors and even bacteria colonization, so set yourself up on a regular schedule for emptying your bin, bag or bucket.

Do you have any kitchen composting tips to share? Tell us about them in the "Comments" section.

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