SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — While food waste continues to pile up in landfills across the country, at University of San Diego, uneaten meals are not just thrown out.
For years now, they’ve been putting scraps to work. A plate of organic waste, will transform into a dark, earthy mix that resembles dirt or used coffee grinds.
And it all happens thanks to a machine made in Ireland, which kitchen staff have decided to name Angus. Chef Manager at Pavilion Dining, Alex Weltz explains how it works.
“It's essentially food and dirt and heat,” Weltz said. “You add in your compost, your microbes, and we cook it essentially for 24 hours. It gets rid of all the moisture, breaks everything down, and then 24 hours later you get the beautiful compost behind it.”
USD was actually one of the first universities in California to begin composting, 14 years ago. But some people forget, that now it’s required.
Since 2023, San Diego law mandates that food scraps, food-soiled paper, and yard waste be collected. But on this campus, nothing leaves.
“It's a 100% cycle here. We don't have any of it go elsewhere,” Senior Director of Student Affairs, Merrill Marker says. "We process it and use it ourselves.”
The compost Angus makes goes right back into the earth, helping plants thrive across campus.
Nationwide, up to 40% of the food supply is wasted every year. That’s billions of pounds, and billions of dollars, lost. But at USD, the leftovers feed into something bigger.
“One of our core statements is that we want to care for the common home, and that's a lesson we want to teach our students,” Marker says. “If we can take that into actionable items, we really feel like it sets that lesson in, and they will take it off into the world after they graduate.”
