Oh Fudge... Can I Compost It?

by Gail
(MPLS. MN. USA)

I have been composting for many years and know the basics. I've been told no meat,no fat and no dairy in the compost. I made some fudge that sugared and we don't want to eat it. It has some cooked cream in it, sugar, walnuts and pure maple syrup. Could this go in the compost?

Fudge and Friends

Thanks for your question Gail. I know we're all given a big list of stuff to leave out of the compost. The truth is that if you could eat it you can compost it.

The particular concoction you are thinking of putting in the compost will be a special treat for the sugar loving bacteria.

The amount of dairy and fats you are adding in this case needs no special treatment. I often include bits of cheese, salad with dressings and bits of meat in my compost. Just crumble up the fudge and toss it in.

If you were adding something like meat that might attract various critters like raccoons or bears you would be wise to pull back your compost and bury it mid bin or pile.

And while small amounts of fat are just fine don't be tempted to pour a vat of deep fryer fat into your bin. That would be an overload. Eventually even that would break down but it would slow the works down until the right populations of soil microbes could be recruited.

Happy Composting...
Leslie

Black soldier flies
by: Ecodude

I've heard of a composting system that uses the larvae of black soldier flies instead of worms.

These little guys eat all meat and dairy like it's nothing, and I read that they will go through up to 15kgs a day from just 1 square meter of larvae!
www.blacksoldierflyfarming.com has heaps of info.