Food Scrap Drop Off Program FAQs

Food decomposes anaerobically in landfills, releasing methane—a greenhouse gas over 20x more potent than CO₂. Composting breaks down material with oxygen, greatly reducing emissions and creating nutrient-rich compost for local soils.

All Lakewood households (your address is verified during signup).

If you're already a CoCo subscriber—thank you for leading the way! Because CoCo didn’t originally collect customer addresses, they don’t yet know which current subscribers live in Lakewood. Once the program launches, Lakewood residents can simply contact CoCo to update their account. CoCo will then apply the $5/month Lakewood rate and prorate it from the program start date.

Visit CoCo’s website to sign up: https://members.compost-colorado.com/forms/drop-off/

CoCo transports material to their Denver commercial facility, where it is processed in an in-vessel composter into finished compost. The circular compost loop is complete when the compost is used in local gardens, farms, and landscapes. Truly circular!

Mid-January 2026 (exact launch date coming soon).

Carts are sealed, serviced frequently and swapped with freshly cleaned ones. Most residents report dramatically less trash odor at home.

No—this program is for food scraps only. Lakewood provides for yard waste collection separately as yard waste will not fit in these tiny carts.

Any sealed container works. The city will provide a free kitchen caddy at workshops.