Minn. hospital invests in composting

Oct. 3—St. Cloud Hospital, in Minnesota, recently installed a new system to grind and dehydrate its food waste, apparently the first of its kind in Minnesota. It substantially reduces the amount of waste that ends up in a landfill, instead converting it to a nutrient-rich product beneficial to the environment.

The pulper and dehydrator system was the next step in the healthcare system's long-standing goal of sustainability, said Kris Peterson, director of supply chain and support services for the hospital. In addition, food waste is now placed into buckets where it can be measured and tracked, Frenn said. That program has saved the hospital about $2,000 a week.