Friday, May 10, 2013

Can You Compost Bread?


We’ve all been there. You pull out the fixings for your favorite sandwich, set a nice plate on the counter, and pour yourself a tall cold drink. Reaching into the bread bag you gently pull out two slices. But what’s this? Ugh….. your heart sinks with a pang of disappointment.

Mold lines the edge of your bread.

Well, you can’t save the sandwich now. Unless you’re the type to shrug, pull off the moldy crust, and keep eating (I’m making my silently-judgmental, grossed out face right now). But you can put that moldy bread to good use in your compost bin.

Bread, while not a vegetable, is made from a plant and will break down in your compost bin rather quickly. Pretty much any food scrap made of flour or grains can go in your bin. This includes:

Bread
Buns
Crackers
Donuts (without cream filling)
Cookies

I don’t think a single cookie has ever made it to my compost bin, even the burnt and stale end up being consumed. But technically, they could be composted.

And what’s the most important thing to remember about composting bread and the like? Bury your food scraps. I’ll say that again.

BURY YOUR FOOD SCRAPS!!!

Otherwise, you will end up attracting animals or creating a “garbagy” smelling bin.

Once in contact with a moist compost pile, bread doesn’t typically last long. Think of a hotdog eating contest without the dog. You know how the contestants dip the buns in water to easily cram down 20 hotdogs in 5 minutes? Now I’m making my grossed out face again.

That bun soaks up the moisture and starts breaking down immediately. The same thing happens in your compost pile. And then the micro and macro organisms alike devour the bun in what I can only imagine is a very competitive sport with millions of contestants and only you cheering them on.

Do you compost bread? If so, am I missing any “bread” categories that you can compost?


I think this croissant is upset about being tossed in the trash.
Or maybe he's just trying to lift his "arms"?


33 comments:

  1. I also compost my leftover pasta that got pushed to the back of the fridge and forgotten about.

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    Replies
    1. I do too! As long as there is not a creamy sauce pasta is fine to compost!

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  2. I generally throw my plain rice and pasta in the compost, too.

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    1. I've put rice in the compost as well.

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    2. Rice rice baby, now riddle me this, what personal changes are you making to save the universe? Hmm!?

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  3. I always put our bread scraps in the compost pile but I have wondered if there is any harm in putting it in if it is moldy. Is the mold harmful in any way? I have had the same question when I find moldy berries in the back of the fruit bin.

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    Replies
    1. very good questions! Actually mold helps in the decomposition process so don't worry about it at all. It just means your bread and berries have started "composting" a little early. :)

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  4. This is not in the bread category but can all citris fruits and rinds be composted? Thanks And also where can I purchase a composter barrrel type that can be turned with a handle? I have back problems and need a more convenient way to turn my compost.

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    Replies
    1. Yes, citrus fruits are great for composting but need to be buried just like any other food scrap. I know Park + Vine and Worm's Way both have tumbler type composters. You can also find them online. Search "Compost Tumbler."

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  5. I love my composter but when we have lots of rain alot of water gets in the bin and then it's a sloppy mess. What should I do or what should I add to get it back on track?

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    1. When your compost is too wet, add more dry stuff, like leaves or shredded paper. This has been a wet year. This will be the first week I will have to water my pile.

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    2. Rice rice baby, now riddle me this, what personal changes are you making to save our universe? Hmm!?

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  6. I just purchased a small double bin tumbling composter and am a little confused about what can and can't be composted. There are so many conflicting sites. Would old muffins with fruit in them be okay to compost? These were made with whole wheat flour (no sugar), blueberries and bananas. I think all this would be okay in the compost but they were cooked with oil, does that matter? I was also wondering about vegetables cooked in EVOO, does the oil make them not a good idea to put in there because it would attract bugs?

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    1. Old muffins should be fine to compost as oil is baked in, but vegetables in olive oil is not a good idea. The reason why is the oil may actually smother the micro-organisms at work and as worms breath through their skin, they too could smoother from a bunch of oil. However, as in most things in life, a little bit won't hurt.

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    2. Anything that used to be a plant can be composted so bread, muffins, dried fruit, all fresh fruit, grains, flour. Definitely NOT meat or dairy products though.

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  7. What can I add to bread to make it compost faster?

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    1. Make sure you bury the bread, add water and a high nitrogen item like veggie or fruit scraps, grass clippings, etc.

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  8. Thanks for clearing up my bread composting question! :) I will now continue to compost my bread with my mind at ease and my compost bin happy!

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  9. Hi I'm really confused I'm new to composting and only just bought my composter last week. So far I'm got shredded paper, shredded cardboard, salad items, fruit, tomatoes, dead daffodils.

    But after researching for other items I find the sites just contradict eachother, this one says you can put in oranges. Rice, etc

    Yet this one (link posted) says you can't because because acid from tomatoes oranges kill the good bacteria. And rice breeds dangerous bacteria.

    http://www.organicauthority.com/sanctuary/11-items-you-shouldnt-compost.html

    I'm really confused lol wlso can I compost these items or not lol.

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    1. Yay, I'm so glad to hear you are diving into composting! You will find differing opinions about the items you listed primarily because backyard composting is not an exact science, I think of it more as an art. :) You have a good start but I would highly recommend you add some brown leaves, shredded if possible, to begin your composting. Cirus peels are fine for a backyard bin in the quantity most families would consume those fruits. They are more acidic, but your bin is so large that the small amount of fruit is not going to affect it. Now if you start squeezing bushels of lemons, you may want to hold back.


      As far as bread and rice, these can produce a "garbagy" smell and attract pests if you add too much. I would recommend adding these in moderation and, always, always, always bury your food scraps. I add stale bread and the like to mine without any problem because I bury them under leaves. Since you are just beginning, perhaps hold off on any already prepared food, like bread and rice, until your bin is more established. Then you can start getting more ambitious. Good luck!

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  10. Thank you for this.Like your sense of humour

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  11. I'm worried about salt content in bread and pasta. Doesn't that remain in your finished compost?

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    1. If you were putting very large quantities of bread and pasta in that might be an issue but the small quantities a family creates should not be a problem.

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  12. I've heard about the presence of pesticides in citrus peels and other plant waste. Do you have any concerns about this? A rule of thumb perhaps?

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    1. I have never had concerns about pesticides from citrus peels but they are very acidic and can change the pH of your pile if you put too many in. I'll have to research the pesticide issue.

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  13. Hello from London. I've just started a composter and also needed to know about bread (back of fridge!). The organic site said never, but your advice is good - and I also like your humour! - so this bread will be spread for the pigeons as I can still see the bottom of my composter. (It'll be better once it's gardening weather again.)
    Thank you, Michelle!

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  14. Yorkshire England. My friend in Belarus
    day's she uses tinned/ fish oil - that it doesn't matter to pour it on the base of fruit bushes/trees. She also buries meat bones, especially chicken....for the calcium. Fascinating

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    1. Native Americans buried fish as fertilizer.

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  15. I've found a finnish EU study that showed any pesticides(allowed in the EU) are broken down through the composting process and further diluted and broken down in the soil before it gets to plants. It suggests that the amounts of chemicals that make it to food are well below accepted amounts of chemicals in food. Furthermore, you would have to consume 17kg of raw lemon peels to reach the toxicity level for the most dangerous pesticide and herbicides.
    Also, in a thermal compost, the hot stage makes the entire pile ph3, so there is no reason to fear acidic things in a compost pile. THe later stages change the pile back to ph6.8-7 Of course, acidic things directly in soil near roots can be problem.

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  16. As for bread and meat in a pile, the question is a personal one. If you live near rodents, anything that looks like food will attract them. If you live near neighbors, anything that produces smells will attract their ire. So in general, home composters should avoid bread and meat. But small amounts will compost fine in time with care, and not be a big problem.

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  17. I have also composted oatmeal and stale cereals. I have also tried homemade compost accelerant this year. 4 L warm water, one can flat beer, l cup cola with sugar and 1/2 c household ammonia. Mix well, pour gradually into compost, add a couple of shovels of garden soil or ready compost. Seems to be working in my two bins and pile. Took four recipes.

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