Composting turns everyday organic scraps—food leftovers, coffee grounds, and certified compostable serviceware into a nutrient-rich soil amendment. Instead of sending these materials to a landfill, composting uses natural decomposition to transform “waste” into a valuable resource that supports healthier soils and a healthier campus. Campus composts over 630,000 pounds annually with our partner, Happy Trash Can Composting.

Acceptable Items for Compost

Acceptable Compost

Acceptable Items for Compost on Campus Include 

Organic Material

Compostable Goods

Food Scraps
  • Leaves and yard trimmings 

  • Organic, non-contaminated lab waste

  • Any Item with an ECO Product Certification

  • Plates and Napkins
  • Cups and Utensils
  • Items that have a visible compostable label 
  • Food waste contaminated pizza boxes
  • Leftover food at events and from dining halls
  • ALL food waste is compostable on campus inclduing meat, dairy, etc.

Benefits of Composting

When food and other organic materials go to a landfill, they don’t break down the same way they do in a compost system. Landfills are low-oxygen environments, and decomposing organics can produce methane, a potent greenhouse gas. Composting diverts that material into a system that creates a positive end product: finished compost rather than avoidable pollution.

Composting also helps us rethink what “waste” is. Many items we toss every day still have value, especially organic material. When we compost, we keep that value in circulation.

Environmental Benefits 

Campus Benefits

Practical Benefits

  • Reduces landfill waste by diverting heavy, high-volume material like food scraps

  • Helps lower greenhouse gas emissions by keeping organics out of landfills

  • Returns nutrients to the soil, supporting healthier plant growth naturally

  • Supports long-term soil health, which strengthens local ecosystems

  • Creates a visible closed-loop system: campus scraps become campus soil

  • Builds a culture of sustainability through everyday actions that add up

  • Improves landscaping outcomes by enhancing soil performance and plant resilience

  • Boosts water retention in soil, which can reduce irrigation demand over time

  • Reduces reliance on synthetic fertilizers by improving nutrient availability

  • Creates healthier planting beds for trees, shrubs, and pollinator-friendly landscapes

Where is Composting on Campus

Composting is only processed on campus through the following locations:

  • Miller Dining Hall
  • Rendezvous Dining Hall
  • Brewed Awakening
  • Norm's Cafe
  • Union Market (Kitchen Prep)
  • Hannon Culinary Arts School
  • Bounty of the Bridgers
  • Food Extrusion Unit
  • Marsh Lab
  • Herrick Hall

We want to grow composting accross campus! If your building is interested in adding a compost collection site please reach out to sustainability@montana.edu

Composting off Campus

The City of Bozeman has available options for citizens within the city and county.We as a campus are in alignment with the city on the composting need around Bozeman and meets regularly to take composting availability to the next level of service. Happy Trashcan also offers residental composting services for a monthly fee with bi-weekly collections.