YES
- Fruit and vegetable scraps
- Coffee grounds, filters, and paper tea bags
- Bread and grains
- Egg and nut shells
- Food-soiled paper towels and napkins
- Shredded newspaper
- Sawdust and wood shavings from untreated wood
- Stale beans, flour, and spices
- Cut or dried flowers
- Houseplants and potting soil
- Feathers
- BPI-Certified compostable plastics
NO
- Meat or fish scraps
- Cheese or dairy products
- Fats, grease, oil, or oily foods
- Cat or dog feces
- Kitty litter
- Colored or glossy paper
- Sawdust made from pressure-treated plywood or lumber
- Coal or charcoal ashes
- Non-compostable materials like plastic, metals, or glass
- Diseased or insect-infested houseplants and soil
- Biodegradable plastics
Big Reuse Collected Partner Sites
Food scrap drop-off sites are popping up all over the city! See DSNY Food Scrap Drop Off Map for options in your neighborhood, if you don't see a Big Reuse option below. Funding approved by City Council supports the drop-offs along with efforts of dedicated volunteers and organizations.
Big Reuse has partnered with many inspiring community groups that sprang up when the City cancelled curbside composting collection. We are adding more as soon as we can confirm with DSNY and other partners. Big Reuse hauls the collected food scraps back to our two community composting sites in Gowanus and Long Island City where we process them with Parks leaves and wood chips. We then give the compost away to community gardens and Parks.
Location: McGolrick Park (Farmers Market) Russell Street &, Nassau Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11222
Time: Sundays 10:00am-1:00pm
Location: Parkside Ave and Ocean Ave (NW Corner)
Time: Sundays 9:00am-11:00am
Location: 1309 Dekalb Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11221 (Know Waste Lands Community Garden)
TIme: Sundays 12:00pm -3:00pm
Location: 219 McKibben Street, Brooklyn, NY 11206
Time: Mon-Fri 7:00am-5:00pm, Sat 7:00am-1:00pm
Locations: 2 2nd Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11215
Time: Mondays 10:30am-1:30pm
Location: 32-01 Vernon Blvd, Queens, NY 11106
Time: Daily 9am-Dusk
Roosevelt Island Farmers Market
Location:543 Main St, New York, NY 10044
Time: Saturdays 10:00am-2:00pm
Q Gardens
Location: 8 E 18th St, Brooklyn, NY 11226
Time: Saturdays, 10:00am-2:00pm
Location 33-50 82nd Street, Queens
Time Thursdays 5:30pm-8:30pm
Location: 1194 Prospect Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11218
Time: Saturdays, 11:00am-12:00pm
Astoria Pug: Broadway N/W
Location: 32-11 31st St, Astoria, NY 11106
Time: Saturdays 9:00am-3:00pm
Astoria Pug: Steinway
Location: 38-12 30th Ave Long Island City, NY 11103
Time: Saturdays,9:00am - 3:00pm
Astoria Pug: Ditmars
Location: 22-70 33rd St Queens, NY 11105
Time: Saturdays, 9:00am-3:00pm
Astoria Pug: Newtown
Location: 30-36 41st St Astoria, NY 11103
TIme: Fridays, 10:00 am-4:30pm
To see more drop off sites around New York City go to DSNY Map of NYC Food Scrap Drop-Off Sites!