Kitchen Manager Myrna Casden is leading food waste reduction and composting at Gresham's Prestige Care Huntington Terrace. She is working with her staff to implement the
Business Food Waste Requirement as well as reduce food waste.
“With food prices rising, reducing food waste is important for helping us stay on budget,” she says.
From crumbs to compost
Staff clear tables after meals and scrape plates as they go. All food scraps go into green compost pails that are then emptied into their compost roll cart and picked up weekly by their waste hauler.
The food scraps then go to a processing facility, where they biodegrade into nutrient-rich compost that is used in gardens and farms around the region.
Along the way, they are gaining insights on ways they can further reduce food waste.
“By keeping an eye on what is coming back as food waste, we are able to get a better sense of what people are eating and what they are not.”
Food waste reduction in action
Some changes they have made over the past year include:
- Right-sizing burger patties. Many burgers were coming back only ¾ of the way eaten. They reduced the burger size slightly.
- Bread and butter and breadsticks. These were shifted to by request instead of provided with all meals, as many extras were not eaten. This also significantly reduced waste.
Myrna is passionate about food and enjoys cooking, catering and managing her kitchen. By growing food waste reduction practices with her staff, she’s excited about staying on budget, and collectively taking care of the environment.
Learn more about
Huntington Terrace
Interested in food waste reduction, food donation, composting or connecting with Myrna directly to learn more? Our Gresham Green Business staff is here to help. Email
GreenBiz@GreshamOregon.gov or call 503-618-2206.