Any way you slice or dice it, kitchen-based food composting is the latest eco-friendly program to be adopted by the San Diego Convention Center Corporation as part of its ever-expanding “green meetings” efforts.

A food composting pilot program was launched in June. After diverting 12.6 tons of prep trimmings from our kitchen to a city-operated composting site for mandatory inspections, Convention Center staff has now been given the “green” light by San Diego’s Environmental Services Department to establish a permanent, full-time food composting program.

The current goal is to capture and divert 240 tons of prep food scraps annually from the Center’s food and beverage department, according to SDCCC General Manager Brad Gessner.

“But ultimately, our goal is to divert all food scraps, thereby eliminating the need for garbage disposals in our kitchen,” Gessner said.

The San Diego Convention Center’s initial sustainability efforts began in 1990 with the diversion of glass and plastic bottles, aluminum cans, mixed paper, wood pallets and clean green waste to a city-owned recycling center. Through the years, those efforts have been expanded to include the numerous green programs and practices in place at our facility today.

The Convention Center has garnered nearly a half-dozen state and city awards for our highly successful conservation and recycling efforts, including the City of San Diego’s Director Award in 2003, 2006 and 2007, the State of California’s 2003 WRAP (Waste Reduction Award Program) Award and the 2005 SANDEE (San Diego Excellence in Energy) Award for Central Plant Efficiency Project (new chiller system installation) in the non-profit category.

“We are committed to supporting and encouraging sustainable practices, including the hosting of environmentally friendly “green” meetings in our building,” said Convention Center Corporation President and CEO Carol Wallace. ”And we invite our clients and guests to join us in these efforts.”