Eco-Cycle's zero waste farmers' market

Type of practice Reuse for food

Name of practice Eco-Cycle's zero waste farmers' market

Name of main actor Boulder's farmers market

Type of actor(s) Farmers, Consumers

Location United States of America

Stage of implementation Retail

Year of implementation 2012

What was/is being done? The Boulder, Colorado, farmers' market is a Zero Waste market patronized by 15 000 customers a day. Everything sold at the market is either compostable or recyclable. Instead of waste bins, the market uses “Zero Waste Stations” consisting of two bins, one for compostable items and another for recyclables.

Outcomes and impacts Eco-Cycle, a nonprofit recycling and Zero Waste service provider, manages the waste stream. Under the contract with Eco-Cycle, vendors are required to use bioplastics. Eco- Cycle purchases the bioplastics in bulk and then resells them to the vendors, thus ensuring that the prices are similar to those paid for the petro-plastic items used previously. Eco-Cycle delivers the compostable material to A-1 Organics, a privately owned and operated composting operation.