Pumpkins Are Not Trash – Take The Pumpkin Pledge!

SoHo Broadway Partner: Get started with composting by taking the Pumpkin Pledge with the Manhattan Solid Waste Advisory Board

Of the nearly 2 Billion pounds of pumpkins grown in the United States, an estimated 1.3 Billion pounds were simply trashed instead of eaten or composted. It seems that Jack-O-Lanterns comprise their own scary group of Halloween food waste, haunting landfills! On a global scale, we don’t make full use of the food we have – every year, around one-third of all food produced for human consumption is lost or wasted. And food waste contributes to the Climate Emergency because the production and transport of food uses up precious energy and resources.

If you are new to composting or already a dedicated composter, take the Pumpkin Pledge and promise to divert your pumpkin from the waste stream and into the compost bin because landfills & incinerators are scary!

And here are some of the many options for composting your pumpkin:

• Food Scrap Drop Off sites at many greenmarkets
• Orange Smart Bins – using the NYC Compost app and map
• Community Gardens
• Community Refrigerators – check first on capacity 
• Food Pantries – some will accept
• Wildlife Rehabs, zoos – some will accept to feed animals 
• DSNY Brown Bins for curbside collection (Queens, Brooklyn and select other areas)

Or, find a Pumpkin Smash near you! These are just some of the smashes hosted by GrowNYC!

Saturday, November 4, 8AM-2PM
Abingdon Square GM | Flyer
W12th St & 8th Ave

Sunday, November 5, 12:00PM-3:00PM
La Plaza Cultural Community Garden | Pumpkin Smash 2023
Southwest corner of E. 9th Street & Avenue C
Hosted by LES Ecology Center