University of Illinois Extension in Cook County and Plant Chicago have teamed up to keep food scraps out of landfills for Earth Day 2022.

Residents can drop off kitchen waste to be composted and pick up a bucket of finished compost. Please BYOB (bring your own bucket). Finished compost is first come, first served. At the event you can sign up for a chance to win a grow bag or bed, pick up free plant starts donated by Gotham Greens or a native tree provided by The Morton Arboretum/Chicago Region Trees Initiative, purchase locally-grown and made products, visit Plant Chicago’s indoor and outdoor gardens, learn more about how to compost, see a worm bin in action, talk to an Illinois Extension Master Gardener or Compost Ambassador, and take part in a free compost tea workshop from noon to 1 p.m. Please register in advance for the workshop.

Help us reach our goal of collecting 1 ton of compostable food scraps at this one-day-only event.

The Urban Canopy  will haul all the food scraps we collect to a commercial composter.

Accepted Materials: food scraps (leaves, stems, cores, old produce), seeds/pits, husks/shells, peels, bread & baked goods, coffee & paper coffee filters, tea & paper tea bags (without staples), dairy solids, meats, bones leftover from cooking, eggs & egg shells, and cooked/frozen food.

Not Accepted Materials: No liquid dairy, oils, pet waste, rubber bands, twist ties, and produce stickers!

No yard waste will be accepted at this years’ event. In Chicago please call 311 for yard waste removal.

Location: Plant Chicago 4459 S Marshfield Ave, Chicago, IL 60609

Time: 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

If you have questions or need a reasonable accommodation, please contact Sarah Batka or 217-300-8636.

To learn more about Illinois Extension’s composting efforts visit the Cook County Composting Initiative webpage