Welcome to a special Veteran’s Day edition of 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.
Veteran Compost, based in Aberdeen, Maryland, is a composting and hauling company founded by U.S. Armed Forces veterans and employing veterans and their families. The company services Maryland, Northern Virginia, and the District of Columbia. The company has composting facilities in Fairfax, Virginia and Aberdeen, Maryland, with a third facility under construction in the Annapolis, Maryland area. With 15 trucks, Veteran Compost services residential and commercial customers with 7, 14, 32, and 64-gallon bins. With more than 25 employees, Veteran Compost is coming up on 10 years of providing composting solutions, and has been working with Rubicon since 2016.
Justen Garrity, U.S. Armed Forces veteran and the Founder and President of Veteran Compost, 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 Veteran Compost’s own company mission?
Veteran Compost: We’re all about diverting material from the landfill and incinerator and turning it into organic compost. Circular economy thinking is at the heart of who we are as a company.
How does Veteran Compost distinguish itself from the competition?
Veteran Compost: We are the only company in the region that’s permitted to collect and compost food scraps. We’re vertically integrated from the cutting board all the way back to getting the compost in the garden. We also do clean-bin swaps each time we work with a customer, and we accept roll-offs, compactors, and tractor-trailer loads at our Aberdeen, Maryland facility from outside haulers.
What is the view of Veteran Compost when it comes to participating in the circular economy and helping build a more sustainable future?
Veteran Compost: At Veteran Compost, we’re all in. We are growing the business so that we can compost more material in the future and increase our environmental impact.
What do you love most about the community in which you work, and the customers you serve?
Veteran Compost: Veteran Compost is in a part of the country where sustainability is starting to catch on—we are starting to see more energy behind composting and recycling every year we’ve been in existence.
What is one of the oddest items or the largest amount of something you have been asked to compost?
Veteran Compost: We’ve de-packaged and composted tractor-trailer loads of Red Bull cans. The compost piles love all that sugar.
Where does Veteran Compost see itself five years from now?
Veteran Compost: At Veteran Compost, we have a saying: “homegrown by heroes.” We want to continue to focus on making high-quality compost, hiring veterans and their family members, and growing our collection and processing capacity. We hope to double the business in the next five years.
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.
