The Resource Center now collects food waste from restaurants, food service, universities and other entities that want a higher level of sustainability while supporting a strong local food system.

Chicago generates over 2000 tons of food waste every day. The City Farm Food to Farm Compost Collection Service turns food waste into the nutrient-packed compost we use to grow our delicious City Farm produce.

Call Ken at (773) 758-1351 for more information

Features

• Service Areas: Loop, lakefront, and nearby
• Weekly or more frequent pickups to meet your needs
• We provide collection carts
• Up to 4,000lbs per pickup
• Composting training for your staff.
• Supports your sustainability and carbon reduction plans
• Complementary waste audit to determine composting and recycling potential.
• Can help organizations meet Section 3, MBE, WBE.
• Assistance complying with the Chicago Climate Action Plan and recycling regulations including a recycling plan, collection requirements, and required documentation.

Benefits

• Supports local food system
• Helps meet your sustainability goals
• Clean, safe quick
• Organic waste odor and vector control
• Reduce conventional waste up to 25%
• High quality standards.

These “trailblazers” in the Chicago green community were recipients of Foresight Design Initiative’s first ever Sustainable Transformation Award. The honorees were recognized for their relentless drive to bring about positive and green change in their communities. Together, they have a combined 80 years of experience in environmentally sustainable practices.

And announcing the closure of the Wrightwood Recycling Drop-off site pains us because, as friends of the Resource Center know, we are passionate about helping Chicago recycle more. A letter from Founder & President, Ken Dunn, follows with details on the closure.

Changes in Resource Center’s Recycling Operations:

Wrightwood Drop-Off Location to Close on November 9th

Dear Resource Center Supporters,

For more than thirty years, the Resource Center has provided free recycling drop-off centers for residents at locations around Chicago.  We currently operate four drop-off centers: Wrightwood & Lincoln, Uptown, North Park Village and the Railyard. We maintain these drop-off sites and keep them open to the public because of our commitment to sustainability and our belief that communities should have access to recycling services. And this has been possible through the generosity of individual donors and the organizations that own the sites. Specifically, we owe a debt of gratitude to Tom Long his colleagues at the 7 Eleven at 2600 N. Lincoln Avenue for twenty-seven years of hosting our Wrightwood Neighbors Drop-off Center.

What’s Changing?

The Wrightwood collections site, located in the parking lot of the 7 Eleven on 2600 N. Lincoln Ave., is closing. The last drop-off day at this site will be Wednesday, November 9^th. This change will not affect our other recycling services. We will continue to operate the three other drop-off sites, and all residential and commercial recycling collections will continue uninterrupted.

What You Can Do.

We value your commitment to recycling and we encourage you to continue your efforts. If you are affected by the Wrightwood site closure, we recommend taking your household recyclables to the recycling facility nearest you.  You can visit one of our other three drop-off locations or a nearby City of Chicago center. The nearest City of Chicago Blue Recycling Drop-Off Center is located at the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum (2430 N. Cannon Drive). For information on hours, materials collected and other City drop-off sites, visit the City of Chicago’s website. We support the City of Chicago in its efforts to expand responsible single stream recycling throughout the City.  While we still believe in the value of our Clean Stream approach, which keeps recyclables separate from one another and as pure as possible, we recommend using the drop-off center closest to you.

Recycling Collections for Commercial and Residential Buildings

We are Chicago’s largest not-for-profit recycler. We provide pick-up services for a variety of businesses, schools, universities, restaurants, museums and multi-family residential buildings. If you are interested in finding out more about our collection services, contact Mike McNamee to request a proposal or call us at (773) 821-1351.

Recycling is our core. Nearly forty years ago, we were one of the first organizations to recognize the value of recycling in Chicago. Today we recycle more than 6,000 tons of material every year. Read more about our 99% guarantee and the story about our recycling services here.

Thank you for your continued support. We invite you to contact us if you have any questions or concerns about the Wrightwood site closure. We want to continue to be your recycling partner and your source for all things sustainable. Visit our website to find out more about our other resource recovery and urban agriculture programs. Together we can make a difference.

Your Chicago recycling partner,
Ken Dunn

Founder & President

Last month, the Resource Center held it’s annual Urban Harvest.  It went MOST EXCELLENTLY!  the weather held off, and the sun was shining bright.  But this event could not have happened without our numerous volunteers.  People of all ages had signed up months in advance to help out with Urban Harvest and for that, the Resource Center is most thankful!  From multiple planning meetings, to cleaning up after Urban Harvest; the volunteers made it all possible.

In traditional Resource Center style, the farmers and the staff elected to give the volunteers a HUGE Thank You by throwing a potluck Farm-B-Q (a BBQ on the Farm…).  Farm-B-Q’s are a relaxed event that happen multiple times through out the spring/summer/fall and are generally reserved for staff.  By having a Volunteer Thank You Farm-B-Q we included the volunteers as “staff” for a moment and gave them a glimpse of how we all relax.  It was a good time, had by ALL!  (it usually is!)

Check out some of the pictures from the Volunteer Thank-You Farm-B-Q below:

What happens to your grocery bags? We don’t have to contribute to the plastic cycle of life, you can choose reusable bags. What are your thoughts on the question “paper, plastic or bring your own?”

Urban Harvest, an evening to celebrate King Onion

Urban Harvest 2011 is upon us! On September 24 we invite you to a decidedly urban affair—on a farm. This unique event will feature hay rides and family activities from 4-6p m, featuring the Urban Worm Girl and food demos from Elena of the Kids’ Table.

Then after six o’clock, we bring out the stars—that is, the food made by our partner chefs, like Paul Virant of Vie and Jason Vincent of Nightwood, using freshly harvested produce from the farm. It’s the farm to fork to farm way of eating. It’s the King Onion way.

The Legend of King Onion

Onions are stinky little bulbs of goodness that add a sweetness to our dinner plates when sauteed and sometimes make us tear-up when we cut through their layers. And as the story goes, the wild onions growing along the mouth of the Chicago river gave Chicago its name. It is what some have come to refer to as the Swenson & McCafferty “smelly onion theory.” That is, John F. Swenson, an avid historian and heirloom plant advocate, along with friend Michael McCafferty published papers on the origins of Chicago’s name.

According to the legend, Swenson claimed that the name Chicago was derived from the Native American Algonquian tribe’s word for “wild onion,” shikaakwa. But other linguistics argue that it is a French word. But the legend, like the smell of an onion, lingers. And our City Farm emblem, the King Onion, is a bridge to the past—a past when local produce was abundant and accessible. Today, we look back over the history of the land to look towards the future, as we plan for new sites to grow new farms in the City.

King Onion is a champion of urban agriculture and on September 24 we are celebrating the past and future of Urban Harvests in the City of Chicago.

You & King Onion

As we prepare to grow the farm, we’re looking to our King Onion supporters to help pave the way to more acres. King Onion ticket holders will walk away with a special City Farm Reuseit.com tote bag, made out of recycled PET, and filled with City Farm t-shirts and goodies from Chicago’s own bluegrass band, Tangleweed and the Kids’ Table.

Are you a King Onion?

City Farm is an inspirational model for urban agriculture and furthering local fresh foods initiatives. City Farm transforms derelict lots into productive centers of activity—but it is more than just a local food source, it is a place for learning about healthy foods.

Children at the Seward Park Jazz Festival learned about leafy greens and sampled freshly harvested cherry tomatoes and cucumbers. They were amazed to learn that all the food was grown right across the street, right in their own neighborhood.

Children gather around the market stand as Dan shares tastes from City Farm's harvest.

And as Alderman closed out the evening, he reminded the crowd that “this isn’t Cabrini-Green anymore” and put special emphasis on the importance of developing community. What’s more, projects like City Farm add something special to neighborhoods and are place where people can come together around a cause we can all celebrate: healthy and delicious food.

We invite you to come visit our farm on September 24 for Urban Harvest. Food prepared by chefs using City Farm produced will be served along with beer and wine. Activities for kids include hay rides and a farm scavenger hunt. Compost and soil demonstrations will intrigue the hobbyist and gardeners alike.

Buy your tickets today!

There's more than one way to have fun with collard greens! Dave digging into the collard greens growing at City Farm.

It’s not broccoli or cabbage, but it is in the same family. These dark leafy greens are chocked full of vitamin C and are a farm favorite! Our production assistant, Dan, is sharing a recipe for collard greens.

Ingredients
1 bunch collard greens (get them fresh from our Market Stand!)
1 or 2 smoky chicken sausages or vegetarian alternative
¾ vegetable or chicken broth
¼ tsp salt
½ tsp smoked paprika (regular paprika will do)
1 large pinch of freshly ground black pepper

Directions
Sautee the sausage in olive oil with salt, pepper and paprika until lightly browned. Meanwhile separate collard leaves from stems. Chop stems and sautee with sausage for about 3 min. Slice leaves thinly and add to pan. Add about half of broth, stir, and cover. Simmer on low-med heat for about 15 minutes, or until greens reach desired consistency. Add additional broth as needed to keep simmering liquids in the bottom of the pan. Serves 4 as a side.

Enjoy! Share your comments below!

UPDATE: Get your tickets online at www.UrbanHarvest2011.com!

Save-the-Date!

Meet the staff and explore the grounds of the urban oasis at this benefit bash. Kid-friendly actitivies take place from 4-6 p.m. At 6 p.m. the party takes on more of a festival feel with live bluegrass music and appetizers from local chefs using City Farm’s produce, plus New Belgium beer, and wine.

When: September 24, 4:00 to 9:00pm
What: A good ol’ fashion farm gathering to support the Resource Center’s City Farm

Activities: Hay rides, Green boxes, tastings, and more!

Why: Come for the amazing food, view of the city and to meet the great people behind City Farm.
Bonus: We’ll be making a BIG announcement about the farm… you’ll have to come to find out!

Online ticket sales start on August 22. Sign-up for our e-newsletter to make sure you get the evite!

The farm in the glow of the city on a warm fall evening (Urban Harvest 2010)

You can check out more photos from last year’s farm-fun-day-extravaganza! here.

Kevin Pierce, Resource Center COO

The Resource Center is proud to announce a new Chief Operating Officer has joined the team!

He’s an architect, an advocate for urban agriculture and a green-minded Chicagoan—and now he is the Resource Center’s new Chief Operating Officer. Join us in welcoming Kevin to the team.

We are all excited to have Kevin in this new role where, among many things, he will help direct relationships and program development. Read the full announcement here.