Managing organic municipal waste
Practical Action
Locating composting plants
Many factors affect the decision of where to locate your business, and the decision will often
involve compromise. Factors include:
availability of raw materials;
labour supply;
land rents;
location of competition;
acceptance by neighbours;
transport distances and cost of transportation; and,
location of customers
Locating compost businesses involves compromise because:
most domestic waste is generated in cities, but the bulk markets for compost lie in
rural areas;
land prices in large cities are very high compared with rural areas; and,
relative to its value, transport costs of waste or compost are often high.
Composting urban organic waste close to the source of raw waste usually puts you close to the
household market which can be lucrative, but is often relatively low-volume. Bulk markets
(e.g. farms) are often located far from where waste is produced, necessitating transportation
of either waste or compost. Usually it is more efficient to transport compost, because it
volume and weight are just 30% of the raw materials. It is also more hygienic to handle and
transport compost compared with waste. In small towns, composting plants may be located
at the edge of the town, near to sources of raw materials and markets.
Marketing
One of the most common reasons composting initiatives fail is because no market is
identified for the compost produced. Indeed sometimes, it is impossible even to give it away,
resulting in small mountains of compost accumulating and eventually causing sites to cease
production. Compost does not have a ready-made market in many areas because of a lack of
awareness of the benefits of compost, concerns about quality (e.g. presence of sharps or
glass), competition with other agricultural impacts (some of which may be subsidised) and
cultural concerns over the use of waste. Applying basic marketing principles can help
producers identifying and stimulate markets for their compost, leading to improved
sustainability and even profit.
There are a number of basic steps in the marketing approach, namely:
Understanding the marketing environment, including competition, legislation and
environment.
Identifying and understanding your market, including 'segmenting' the market.
Segments may include for example: local householders; and rural farmers.
Considering the four Ps: Product (defining the type and quality of compost), Price
(devising pricing which appeals to the market and which makes you profit), Place
(locating your business) and Promotion (awareness raising, packaging etc.).
For further information see 'Marketing Compost’ (Sandec).
Strategic partnerships
Many players have a stake in organic waste management and it can be beneficial to form
partnerships as a producer. Composting reduces the amount of waste municipalities have to
collect, transport and dispose of. In recognition of this, they are sometimes willing to provide
incentives to NGOs and businesses, for example, provision of land for composting, or direct
payment reflecting their cost savings.
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