Suffolk Salvation Army Corps is Making Environmental History in Virginia by Launching an A500 Rocket® Model Food Composter, the First One in the State

Tarrytown, NY, May 01, 2012 --(PR.com)-- The Suffolk Salvation Army Corps is making environmental history in Virginia by installing an A500 Rocket® model food composter, becoming the first Salvation Army soup kitchen in the nation to use this cutting-edge technology. The Rocket® composter, an on-site in-vessel food composter, is used in approximately 16% of UK universities, with more than 400 Rocket® composters operating throughout the US and the UK. This is a significant milestone in going “green”, and taking the lead to implement this cutting-edge technology and treat food waste in a sustainable way. Institutions using the Rocket® composter have cut waste-collection costs, saved money on buying compost and pest control, helped divert food waste out of landfill sites, and educated students and communities in sustainability.

The Rocket® composter is a safe solution and a sustainable and hygienic alternative to sending food waste to Suffolk landfills. The A500 Rocket® composter which is located at the Suffolk Salvation Army’s–Matthews Building, treats up to 80 gallons of food waste per week. The unit was provided by a grant from Birdsong Peanuts to the Salvation Army and it uses peanut hulls and wood chips as bulking agents for composting. In just 14 days, the Rocket® composter transforms food waste into compost, which can be used for lawns and other green areas, thus closing the loop of recycling. It is a continuous process; once the 14-day loop is closed, compost is available every day! The compost produced will be used on site for the landscaping of the new “physical health and educational building.” Compost will also be shared with the Suffolk Partnership for a Healthy Communities, ”Youth Gardening Project.”

Gerardo Soto, managing director of NATH Sustainable Solutions, said, “This is a great example of creative partnerships among a not-for-profit, a corporation and a community. The Salvation Army is diverting food waste from landfill, using a by-product such as peanut hulls as a bulking agent, putting nutrients from the compost back to the soil and contributing to the community’s education providing compost for the local gardens. We are very excited to work with the first nationwide Salvation Army soup kitchen to treat food waste onsite.”

The catalyst for the Salvation Army’s decision to identify a sustainable way to recycle food waste onsite is a landmark step in going zero waste discharge and going “green” in it’s new “Physical Health and Education Building. This specific initiative helps to reduce the amount of food waste sent to landfills every year. Food waste that goes to landfills produces methane which is 20 times more damaging to the environment than CO2. Food waste is almost 70 percent water and leachates which contaminates nearby water streams.

The Rocket® composter is the ideal solution to manage organic waste in a sustainable way, including food waste, meat and fish, garden and horticultural waste. It is the perfect solution to solve the organic waste problem at universities, schools, corporate cafeterias, hotels, prisons, and nursing homes, among other users and reduce CO2 emissions.

Mr. Soto continued, “This unique operation will inspire many similar sites such as food banks which generate many tons of food waste every year. Opportunities for other landfill is a short-term solution that contaminates; it comes at a price both to organizations’ bottom line and to the environment and communities.” That’s why at NATH Sustainable Solutions the main focus is to divert organic from landfills, providing a number of onsite-food waste solutions that not only treat waste by turning it into useful products but also save money in the process and provide environmental benefits. We continue to revolutionize US organic waste treatment initiatives while contributing to the environment.

Tidy Planet Ltd, the Rocket® composter manufacturer has been creating significant success stories with this innovative product in the UK. Their customers through the use of the Rocket® composter during 2011 have been able to divert almost 4,000 tons of food waste from landfills. NATH Sustainable Solutions (NATH), which distributes the Rocket® composter in the US, has been implementing this cutting edge technology in many states including New York, New Jersey, Ohio, Oregon, California, Virginia, Illinois, and Colorado.

NATH Sustainable Solutions provides consulting services implementing cutting-edge sustainable solutions to universities, colleges, schools, hotels, nursing homes, corporate cafeterias, hospitals, supermarkets, and prisons, among other organizations. As consultants, the main focus is to help clients understand the facts about, the consequences of, and the solutions to treating food and oil waste. NATH Sustainable Solutions advises clients on implementing solutions that will help reach their environmental and corporate social responsibility targets, reduce carbon dioxide emissions, and provide environmental stewardship with clients, suppliers, and communities served.NATH Sustainable Solutions is expert in food and oil waste in the United States, providing unique sustainable solutions for any type of site.