Pink January Kassow, Administration Manager, connected with Waste Wise to see how they could reduce waste and better their recycling. The Coon Rapids location had a recycling service in place, but it was under-utilized and Pink recognized how much food waste was ending up in the trash and wanted to do more. After a visit with a MN Waste Wise recycling specialist, they discovered that all food scraps, and even compostable paper products like paper towels, could be composted and together created a plan to roll out a new recycling and organics program.
Costco Coon Rapids applied for and was awarded a grant from Anoka County for an array of materials to assist with waste reduction and recycling optimization, including color-coded receptacles and compostable utensils, plates, and bowls for their staff break room and compostable bin liners for throughout the warehouse. These improved collection efforts have resulted in an annual estimated diversion of 381,600 pounds of organic material and 55,200 pounds of recyclable material.
Overall, Pink has been pleased with their efforts, but is excited to continue to improve. “We still have lots of progress to be made, but we’ve done a lot!” She shared that they had gotten good feedback from employees and that "many employees didn’t know we had gotten a grant, but they think it is so cool!”