Welcome to the Haul of Fame, a weekly series from Rubicon in which we sit down with a hauler partner to talk about their company, their community, and how they’re collaborating with Rubicon in our mission to end waste.
Black Bear Composting is based in Crimora, Virginia and provides organics recycling to residents and businesses in the Blue Ridge Mountains in the greater Charlottesville area and central Shenandoah Valley in the state of Virginia. With three collection trucks, Black Bear Composting is a first-generation business started in 2010 with a passion for composting. With three full-time employees, five part-time employees, and plans to grow, Black Bear Composting starting collaborating with Rubicon in July of this year.
Eric Walter, Chief Composting Officer at Black Bear Composting, sat down with Rubicon to talk about his company and mission for the Haul of Fame.
How does Rubicon’s mission to end waste match-up to Black Bear Composting’s own company mission?
Black Bear Composting: Black Bear’s focus is on recycling food scraps through composting. Like Rubicon, we believe that most waste has opportunities for further use and reuse before we even think about it going to the landfill.
How does Black Bear Composting distinguish itself from the competition?
Black Bear Composting: We stick to the fundamentals. We simply explain our services, reliably provide those same said services, and we do so with kindness.
What is the view of Black Bear Composting when it comes to participating in the circular economy and helping build a more sustainable future?
Black Bear Composting: We love being a part of the circular economy and find it helps build long-term customers when they view waste in this way. Part of our collection service is to periodically return some finished compost to our customers for them to use or donate to a community organization, such as a local school’s garden. This small activity goes a long way to bolster sustainable waste practices and build community.
How has the Rubicon technology in your fleet of vehicles helped you and your drivers in their everyday job?
Black Bear Composting: Rubicon’s technology has been a game-changer for us. We had been researching different technologies to improve our collection route management and were pleasantly surprised when we were offered the Rubicon tech as part of our partnership with the company. Without Rubicon, this technology would typically be out of reach for small haulers like us. While we have used it from day one of our partnership, there are still many features that we are just now learning about. This technology makes us feel a part of the bigger Rubicon team.
Where does Black Bear Composting see itself five years from now?
Black Bear Composting: We will be successful in five years as long as we continue to get the word out about the importance of composting food scraps, we make it easy, and we demonstrate the benefits of the circular economy and provide top-notch customer service. The number of customers, team members, and collection trucks will naturally grow with that success. We plan to be ready when Virginia realizes that food scraps shouldn’t be landfilled and that Virginians support public policy to encourage composting efforts.
Lori Sullivan is Vice President of Hauler Operations at Rubicon. To stay ahead of Rubicon’s announcements of new partnerships and collaborations around the world, be sure to follow us on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter, or contact us today.
