As Solarcone continues its mission to bring food waste solutions to American families, companies, and agencies, we have enjoyed attention from the media. Check back often for the latest information.

 

March 30, 2009

Celebrating Our 20th Year!

In 1989, there was not yet a US Composting Council or International Compost Awareness Week. The recycling movement was gaining momentum but very few were yet thinking about the impact of diverting organic material from the waste stream. However, small organizations and businesses such as Solarcone were dedicated to supporting the advancement of residential organics education.

In the last 20 years we have seen great progress and increased attention given to composting and food waste diversion. We are pleased to have contributed in our small way and will continue outreach and programming wherever there is interest and need.

Solarcone's founder, Lloyd Falconer, and Jack Warrington, the inventor of the Green Cone, worked tirelessly to promote the idea that small lifestyle changes can make a big difference to our environmental health. Although both men have now passed away, we shall continue to honor their hard work and foresight.

We are excited to see what the next 20 years brings...and we thank you for your efforts in supporting positive environmental change!

 

 

January 21, 2009

The US Composting Council Annual Conference

Solarcone will be exhibiting at the 17th Annual Conference and Trade Show in Houston.

Solarcone, Inc. is a member of the USCC, a national, non-profit trade and professional organization promoting the recycling of organic materials through composting. The USCC is the only national organization committed to the advancement of the composting industry.

The US Composting Council is involved in research, training, public education, composting and compost standards, expansion of compost markets and the enlistment of public support. We are happy to show our continued support for this valuable organization.

 

 

December 31, 2008

Wintertime Composting!

Even though it's getting colder, that doesn't mean you have to stop composting! The Green Johanna is a hot composter with a patented design that keeps temperatures warm enough to work all winter long. And with the optional Winter Jacket, the Green Johanna will continue to compost at temperatures as low as -13F.

Remember - in addition to yard waste, you can also put all food waste in the Green Johanna. Cooked & uncooked, meat, dairy, bones...add it all!

 

 

June 27, 2008

Summer Tips for the Green Cone

As the weather gets warmer, decomposition accelerates. As a result, you may see fruit flies or maggots in your Green Cone. The elevated temperature is creating a wonderful environment for these pests to hatch.

Although the creatures found in the Green Cone are helpful to the digestion process, they can be extremely annoying. We have a few tips to help combat them organically:

Before taking your food scraps to the Green Cone, spray them with orange oil or neem seed oil extract. Or if those are unavailable, canola oil will work. The eggs (unfortunately) are already on the food we eat, we just don't realize it. So spraying your food before you take it to the Green Cone is key - when the larvae are covered with oil, they will not be able to hatch once in the Green Cone.

If it has reached the point where the pests have already hatched, spray some organic fly killer directly into the Green Cone. It is important that you use an organic pesticide (recently, a customer just told us about an organic fly killer that contains rosemary, cinnamon and garlic - and it worked great!)

We are currently looking at stocking organic pesticide here at the Solarcone Store. We will surely announce it when we do!

Happy Summer from your friends at Solarcone!

 

 

June 14, 2008

It Happens to Us, Too...

Solarcone, Inc. is located in the Midwest. If you have been watching the national news, you know that we have been suffering with heavy rain and devastating floods here.

And our Green Cones are filled with water.

So what are we doing to work through this issue? Firstly, we have stopped putting food scraps in the Green Cone. We are saving our food waste in a container and placing the container in the freezer.

Secondly, we have been putting brown waste in our Green Cones - newspaper, coffee filters, etc. Normally this is NOT recommended for the Green Cone. However, we are adding bulking agents to soak up the water.

This will slow the digestion process considerably but eventually all the organic material will decompose into the surrounding soil and within a month, our Green Cones will be back to working as usual.

So for now we wait. And in the meantime, we are donating water and clothing to those in our region who have lost so much more...