WILTON — A food-recycling program began Tuesday at the Transfer Station.

AgriEnergy is providing two totes for scraps, which will be taken to Exeter in Penobscot County and turned into biogas to produce electricity for a dairy farm next to the Agri-Energy digesters. The byproduct is used for bedding for dairy cows.

Residents can collect food scraps in plastic bags and dump the entire package into the totes, said Becky Secrest, Androscoggin Valley Council of Governments environmental planner. Spoiled food can be put into the totes, package and all.

Food scraps that can be included are: fruits, vegetables, meat, fish, dairy products, bread, pasta, rice, grains, eggshells, coffee grounds and filters, soiled tea bags, jellies and sauces. Food in solid, liquid or frozen form in metal, plastic or cardboard packaging can also be included.

Items that cannot be included are seafood shells, animal carcasses, soiled pizza boxes, leaves, grass, clippings, diapers, chemicals, cat litter, pet waste, personal hygiene products, medicines, styrofoam, facial tissues, rubber bands, latex gloves, metals, plastics or cardboards that do not contain food products.

“I collect my food scraps by the kitchen sink in a small plastic-lined bucket,” Secrest said. “Once full, I tie up the bag and place it in a 5-gallon bucket until recycling day.”

In addition to providing this collection service to towns, AgriEnergy also services Maine Hannaford stores.

More information is available at the Transfer Station.

Contact Secrest at 207-754-8158 or rsecrest@avcog.org with questions.

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