The average American person throws away 30 pounds of garbage a week. Of that, at least 20% is organic waste that could be composted.

What’s more, when the organic materials find their way into a landfill and attempt to break down naturally, they cannot.  Instead they release methane gas, which is a greenhouse gas approximately 20 times more powerful that carbon dioxide.

By composting and re-directing, that organic material is breaking down naturally and can be applied back onto land, helping enhance soil quality, prevent erosion and increase water retention.

Today, we provide pick-up service to the following towns: Bala Cynwyd, Wynnewood, Penn Wynne, Narberth, Ardmore, Havertown, Haverford, Villanova, Gladwyne, St. David’s, Wayne, Devon, and Newtown Square.

Not seeing your town listed? Join our waiting list. We are adding new towns every day as demand increases.

Mother Compost has partnered with the folks over at Kitchen Harvest & Linvilla Orchards. All compostables will be taken to their on-farm composting operation where they monitor, turn and test the materials as they undergo the natural process of becoming compost.

As of today, we offer pick up’s on an every other week basis.

If you live within our service area- yes!

Once you sign-up, a team member will reach out to you to discuss where is best to leave the bucket. We know that there can be rules as to where you can/cannot leave your bucket, so any location details you can give us is appreciated as we work together to find a location that is convenient for you and our drivers.

You can test out our services with our free month trail! During the trial you will not be charged, and will experience two collections to see if our service is right for you.

Additionally, you can  sign up for a monthly subscription and cancel at any time.

Yes! Our program Give $5, Get $5 allows you to send your personalized link to neighbors and friends. Once they sign up, you both get $5 credited to your MC account. Access your link through your customer portal!

Yes, we are partnering with local businesses within our service area of the Main Line. If you are interested in getting your business composting, fill out our commercial questionnaire here or contact us at info@mothercompost.com to set up a free 15 minute consultation.

Yes, our shop is visible from your customer portal and we sell garden gloves, long sleeve adults shirts, short sleeve kids T shirts, compostable bin liners, gift cards, and our gift & grow package.

If you are interested in purchasing a gift certificate of any amount, you can do so under the services tab on our website.

If you are not a subscriber and interested in our shop items head to the Shop button at the top of our website. All non subscribers will have an additional $10 delivery fee, and customers should purchase through the Shop in their portal to avoid these fees.

We are often asked about selling additional merchandise & have agreed not to make key chains, baseball hats, etc because we want to stick with our zero waste mission as much as possible. We did not want to create more products as we know – we already have plenty of hats, key chains, water bottles, etc. In the vein of Zero Waste and the 3 R’s, we encourage our employees and communities to Reduce, Reuse and Recycle their products instead of creating and purchasing new ones.

We feel strongly that their mission complements our own. When we are re-directing materials from the landfill, many times it is in the form of excess food. We want to send that back to the hungry in Philly so they can benefit in a small way from food heading to the compost pile.

A bucket will be delivered to the address you provided within a few business days, and you will be given a collection day.

Pick-ups are currently scheduled for every other week, and you can find always see your service dates in the calendar on your customer portal.

You will receive a reminder via e-mail & SMS the day before each pick up. Place your bucket out by the curb by 9pm the night before your collection, our drivers will service your bucket before 5pm on the day of your collection.

We leave you a clean bucket and the cycle repeats!

Each subscriber is able to register for up to 60 pounds of compost each spring during our compost givebacks, which runs through March and April.

New Subscribers: must be signed up by January 31st to qualify for givebacks for that year. So sign up by 1/31/22 to be eligible for givebacks this spring!

Current Subscribers: registration for 2022 givebacks have closed as of 3/14. All compost givebacks have been delivered.

You can still get compost: Purchase additional compost as needed through the Shop in your customer portal!

• • One MC bag of compost allows for a half inch layer on a 3 x 3 plot
  • $10 + tax per bag, subscribers get free delivery!
  • Compost orders over 30 bags are considered bulk orders which should be ordered directly from our partners at Linvilla Orchards
    • Call 610-876-7116 and mention that you compost with MC- it entitles you to a 20% discount on bulk compost orders.
    • Bulk orders are a minimum of 1 yard
    • Linvilla delivers compost at cost determined by mileage

Most people put their bucket with their other trash bins and leave a countertop compost bin either on their counter or under their sink. Every day or so, just empty that into your bucket.

If you have a special week, like you hosted a major holiday, let us know and we will do our best to accommodate. We can provide a special pick-up for an additional fee, or drop you an extra container that we will take back at your next pick-up.

If you are consistently composting more every week, good for you! We offer additional buckets as needed, up to a max of 5 per household.

If you missed your collection, contact us via phone, email or the customer portal with whichever solution you prefer:

• Bring your bucket to an MC drop spot, free for all subscribers. Reply to this email for more information on when/how you can drop materials.

• We can drop you an additional container to hold you over till your next service date for a $10 fee. Container will be removed at your next scheduled collection. Containers delivered on Monday or Friday.

• If you need materials removed sooner, we can collect materials on an upcoming delivery route for a $15 fee. Please submit requests ASAP. Delivery routes are Monday or Friday.

Please reach out to us as soon as possible after your missed collection and let us know which solution works best for you.

We ask that you put your buckets out for service the night before your collection day. Our drivers operate as early as 4am to as late as 5pm, depending on the day. Having your bins out the night before ensures your bins will be serviced no matter what time our driver comes by.

We ask that you place your bins in a location that is visible from the road, and as close to the curb as possible. This ensures that our drivers can efficiently spot and service your bin swiftly and thoroughly. If your service day is the same as your trash and recycling day, please place your compost bins separate from trash and recycling bins to avoid it being mistaken for trash.

Your individual service schedule will fluctuate as our routes continue to grow and add new subscribers. New members from week to week can change the layout of our routes dramatically, making your stop first one week and last the next.  We know this can be confusing, and have a feature to send you an email notification as soon as your bucket has been serviced so that you don’t have to wonder if we have come yet. If you would like to add this feature, head to service notifications in your customer portal or send us an email. 

Additionally, our drivers are out from 4am – 5pm on collection days. If your bucket has not been serviced between those hours do not worry, we are still on the way! If it is after 5pm, please contact us as perhaps we missed you ( we make mistakes too!) 

Here are a few tips for deterring squirrels and other neighborhood critters from your bins. 

Our best solution is to keep it indoors, if you have a screened in porch, garage, or shed that could be helpful. 

Other helpful tips are as follows:

-Keep the outside of the buckets clean, they are attracted to the smells on the outside of the buckets.  

–Purchase Grannick’s bitter apple spray, this is used on pets, and works on outside critters too! Just spray the buckets when you put them outside. This can be found at any pet store.

-After collection, line the bottom of your bucket with some old paper, like newspaper, or brown paper bags, etc. This should help to absorb the smell.

It can be a struggle with our outside furry friends, especially in the colder months when their natural food sources are limited.

Reach out and let us know! You have options

1. Consider moving up one more bucket – we want to take everything you have!
2. Call or email us describing the materials in question – a photo is the most ideal
3. We can schedule to come out for a special pick up of large volumes of materials for a fee – fee depends on the materials in question
4. OR We can consider your route and if it is possible to take with your regular collection for a small fee – fee depends on the materials in question

Please notify us right away so we can alert our drivers and work out a solution that works for both of us.

There are various ways in which you can communicate with our team. Email us at info@mothercompost.com or give us a call at 610-509-9700.

You can also use your portal to send us a direct message, report a missed pick up, or even reach out via the customer support form.

You Can Compost:

FOOD

Coffee Grounds/Filters

Cooked/Fried Food

Dairy

Egg Shells

Freezer-burned Foods

Fruits & Vegetables: peels/pits/seeds Grains: Pasta/bread/rice Seeds/Nuts/Nut shells

Processed Food

Powdered Milk

Pizza

Rotten/Moldy Food

ORGANIC MATERIALS

Compost ONLY IF it fits in your bin

BPI-Certified Compostable Ware

Hair Clippings- Human or Animal

Nail Clippings

Pencil Shavings

Toothpicks

Wool/Dryer Lint

Fireplace Ashes

Garden/Yard Trimmings

Houseplant Trimmings

Sawdust

Feathers

We do not accept:

FOOD

Meat/Poultry

Seafood

Shellfish

Gum

OTHER

Inorganic Materials

Plastic, Acrylic, Polyester, Rubber

Rubber Bands

Twist Ties

Animal or Human Waste Chemicals/Toxics

Cigarette Butts

Coal – Treated

Diapers

Diseased Plants

Herbicides/Pesticides

Kitty Litter

Medicine/Medical Waste

Treated Woods

Used Tissues (due to COVID)

E-waste

These Items May Be Compostable:

FOOD

Tea

If loose → compost

Natural bag w/ NO staple → compost

Natural bag w/ staple → remove staple & compost

Unnatural bag → trash

RECYCLABLES

Cardboard/Paper/Paper Products

If waxy → recycle or trash

If non waxy and greasy/covered in food → compost

If Clean → recycle

Corks

If natural → compost

If synthetic/wax coated→ trash

*We are not collecting up large amounts of yard waste, but will take seasonal items (pumpkins, cornstalks, pine boughs) as needed.

For a print out PDF of this list click here

General rule of thumb

• If it’s labeled compostable & made from cardboard or starch-like material, it’s good to go
• If looks like plastic but labeled BPI Certified Compostable – we accept it
• Any type of plastic looking cutlery, BPI certified compostable or not – we CANNOT accept – these materials are not breaking down quickly enough at our site

Local Establishments:

Whole Foods: All items are SSI certified and are good to compost

HipCityVeg: All items are BPI Certified, and are good to compost

Coco Thai Bistro: All items are certified compostable and are good to compost. *The wooden cutlery they use is accepted in our piles

MOM’s Organic Market: Certified cardboard & plastic-looking material are good to compost! Cutlery unfortunately is not. 

Sweetgreen: Bowls are certified compostable and are good to compost. Cutlery unfortunately is not.

PokeOno: Bowls are certified compostable and good to compost. Cutlery unfortunately is not.

Honeygrow: If the item is labeled compostable on the bottom of the container, it is acceptable. If you do not see the compostable label, it is not compostable. Cutlery unfortunately is not.

Blue Pearl Cafe: Both cardboard & plastic labelled Greenware are BPI certified compostable and good to compost. Cutlery unfortunately is not. 

Do you have a favorite place that is not listed? Let us know at info@mothercompost.com. 

We are so glad to see how many local businesses this community supports! 

Currently, we do accept certain compostable ware. Please look for the BPI Compostable Certification logo on the label. This certification tells us that our pile can break it down without any issues. Certified according to the US Standard ASTM D6400.

Items listed below with the BPI certification still cannot be accepted at this time: 

• Compostable “plastic” utensils. They are not breaking down in the piles. Wood utensils are acceptable.  
• Compostable wipes.

**In the name of wasting less, we continue to urge everyone to utilize reusable items whenever possible. Click here for a flyer with our recommendations on products that can be swapped for single use items. Trying just one can be a game changer!

Please look for the BPI Compostable Certification or the US Standard ASTM D6400 Certification.  This certification tells us that our pile can break it down without any issues.

If you do not see one of these certifications, please reach out to our team for clarification & do not put it in our buckets. General rule of thumb is that everything compostable is biodegradable, but not everything biodegradable is compostable. 

Items listed below with the BPI certification still cannot be accepted at this time: 

• Compostable “plastic” utensils. They are not breaking down in the piles. Wood utensils are acceptable.  
• Compostable wipes.

**In the name of wasting less, we continue to urge everyone to utilize reusable items whenever possible. Click here for a flyer with our recommendations on products that can be swapped for single use items. Trying just one can be a game changer!

While liquids like expired juice and milk are compostable, we ask that whenever possible, please avoid dumping liquids straight into the bucket, as it makes the buckets heavier. Typically old juices/milk/ and other liquids are okay to dump in the kitchen sink.

While you can rip your box up and put the pieces in your bucket, you can also just simply put your pizza boxes underneath your bucket, or in between your buckets if you have multiples.

You just want to make sure it is weighed down or secure so it does not fly away. Pro tip for extra MC brownie points – flatten your boxes if you can!

Head to the Service Calendar in your Customer Portal ( Service & Support > Service Calendar) from there it will show you your upcoming collections on a calendar and you can click onto the date and skip that week’s collection for a $5 credit.

Skips must be submitted via customer portal or by reply text to our SMS reminders by midnight the night before collection to ensure our system processed the request properly.

You can log in by clicking on the “login’ button at the top of our website. If you need password reset, reach out to info@mothercompost.com and we will send you a temporary password.

You guessed it, in your portal! You can view your upcoming service day, your current subscription, your payment methods, and next bill date and full billing history.

Head into your portal and click the ‘Give $5, Get $5’ tab. From there you can directly copy your link and share it. Additionally, referral links are provided in your initial welcome email.

Still can’t find it? Email info@mothercompost.com and we can send it to you!