Try a way to compost meat properly. If you wish to compost meat, read this post. Learn more on how to compost meat, bones, fat today!
You may have heard not to compost meat: “do not compost meat scraps, dead animals and bones. Try to compost meat, fish meat instead. Home compost meat is only acceptable when cooked.”
Learn how to properly compost meat and how to compost meat at home.We’ll show you how to compost meat scraps and compost meat and fish waste. If you want to compost meat, do not compost meat, bones and dairy raw. It’s better to compost meat from cooked meat.
Can you compost meat and bones? As long as you never compost meat raw! You can compost meat, even compost meat, grains, dairy. Try ways that enables you to compost meat, grains, dairy and fish. If you have to compost meat know how you can compost meat effectively!
Many people have concerns about whether or not they can compost meat. After all, meat smells bad when it starts to decay, and it can sometimes change the way the compost pile works, too.
But meat is an organic product; by its very nature, it will decay and turn into compost just like any other organic matter. For that reason, yes, it is possible to put meat in your compost pile.
But what if you still aren’t sure you can do this? Read through the information below to help you learn more about whether or not to compost your meat.
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Can you compost meat?
In this section, we’ll give you some basic information to help you learn more about the process of composting meat. From there, you’ll be better prepared to decide for yourself whether or not meat belongs in your home’s compost pile. Check out the tips and info below:
How is meat composted?
- Meat breaks down a little bit differently than some other organic materials that can be composted. This is because of the type of bacteria present on these materials.
- The type of bacteria that can be found on rotting meat is referred to as anaerobic bacteria, which means it can thrive without any air nearby. These bacteria don’t generate a lot of heat, but they do make a lot of smell, which is the reason rotting meat smells the way it does.
- When composting meat, the number of aerobic bacteria (the ones that do the work in a compost pile) may dwindle, so it’s important to introduce other materials that will encourage them to thrive as well.
What kind of meat can you compost?
- Red meat: This type of meat can be composted as long as you pay attention to the issues outlined later in this section and prepare for them.
- Fish: This type of meat breaks down quicker than others, but it also smells much stronger when it’s composting. This offer can be composted, however, if you can manage the smell.
- Cooked meat in general: Cooked meats are generally more acceptable to compost than raw. They are less likely to carry salmonella this way.
What kind of meat should you avoid composting?
- Poultry: Until you have some composting experience, it may be best to avoid poultry, as it is more likely to contain diseases and harmful bacteria than other types of meat.
- Raw meat: Even if you are simply going to throw it away, you should cook any meat you’re going to add to the compost pile. This will remove bacteria that can make you sick. If you also chop up the meat at the same time, it will be more likely to break down in a timely fashion.
What are some problem areas when it comes to composting meat?
- One of the biggest issues when it comes to meat composting is the presence of pests. Many kinds of pests enjoy eating meat and are happy to chow down on meat that has started to lightly decay. Rats and raccoons are major pest issues, but so are some insects as well as stray dogs and cats.
- Pests can drag your compost pile all over the yard and may also cause disease to spread from the decaying meat.
- If your compost pile doesn’t get hot enough, the meat can spread E. coli as it decays as well. This is not very common, but it is a possibility to keep in mind.
- Meat smells bad when it’s composting. The smell may be a problem for you and even for your neighbors, depending on the temperature outside.
How can you troubleshoot these issues?
- One way to keep these issues from being too big of a problem is to keep your compost pile in an interior building, such as a shed built specifically for compost. However, this is pricey and takes up a lot of room, and it may not work for everyone.
- Use an airtight composting machine if possible. This will prevent the smell from escaping and will not allow pests to get inside, either.
- You can also turn the compost pile often to troubleshoot these problems. Turning will keep it heating enough to kill of bacteria, and it will also deter pests from finding the source of the smell.
- Finally, bury your meat in the center of the compost pile so dogs and cats won’t notice the smell or dig down to it as easily. These tips may not deter all pests, but they will make a difference in the number of pests you see breaking into your compost pile when meat is there.
Conclusion
Since there are issues when it comes to composting meat, is there really any reason to do it at all? Isn’t it better just to throw the meat away? In fact, it’s still better to compost meat when you can, because it’s better for the environment overall. You just need to be sure you’re handling the compost the right way.
What are some benefits to adding meat to your compost pile? Here are a few to remember:
- Bone meal makes an excellent fertilizer. When you compost meat with bone in it, you’re giving your plants a chance to be even healthier and happier in an organic way. The calcium present in bone meal may contribute to certain types of plants in unique ways, depending on the plants you’re trying to grow.
- You can save money by fertilizing plants with compost made from meat and bone. Even the blood present in composted meat can help make plants stronger and healthier, and many people who fertilize with this type of compost don’t ever have to purchase store-bought fertilizer again in order to make their plants grow.
- It’s not hard to bury your meat in your compost pile and keep pests at bay. Doing this is a quick and simple method of making sure you don’t have to worry about problems while composting your meat.
- Composting meat can make it even easier for you to reach a no-waste lifestyle. Even if your goal is simply a low-waste lifestyle, you’ll be cutting down even more on the amount of waste your household creates when you have something to do with the pieces of meat leftovers from dinner.
- You can free up even more space in landfills when you compost your meat at home. Learning how to properly and safely compost meat means it won’t take up room in landfills around the country, and therefore, those landfills will have more space for items that need to be thrown away rather than composted.
You’re benefiting yourself as well as the environment when you add meat to the compost pile, so it’s a win-win situation for everyone involved! Don’t be afraid to try out composting meat and see for yourself what a difference it can make in your life. Just be sure you have some composting experience first, and you should be good to go.