120. Food Waste Solutions: How Home Composting Can Be Easy with Jeremy Lang of Pela

Our guest today is Jeremy Lang of Pela, the company that started with a product that you hold every day - the world’s first compostable phone case. Jeremy had the courage to spend years experimenting with new materials to try and find an alternative to plastic that could be used in everyday products.

Pela’s mission is to make sustainable products the new normal and they recently launched another product, a home countertop composter called Lomi to help solve the food waste and plastic problem. Lomi became the most successful cleantech crowdfunding campaign of all time, raising over $9M. Pela and Lomi are now creating a waste innovation category with a goal of eliminating 10 billions pounds of waste on their mission to create a waste-free future, a testament to Jeremy’s belief in creating businesses as a force of good– to leave the world a better place. 

We are so much in awe of Jeremy and the innovative technologies he has spearheaded through his company and products. In this episode, we're hearing and talking about new technologies that are already addressing some of our most pressing problems and have given us real hope that some things are moving in the right direction.

Topics discussed:

• The story of Pela and how it started with compostable phone cases 
• How Pela came up with a home composter
• The problem of food waste
• Food waste as a valuable natural resource
• "Wasting food" vs food waste or food scraps
• The Lomi home composter
• From food waste to good dirt
• Home composter reduces the weight of food waste by 70% 
•  Trials with taking the Lomi compost dirt straight to farms
•  Demographics of those using the home composter
•  How the home composter is carbon neutral 
• End-of-life plan for the home composter
• Responsibility Economy
• Cutting out the compost facilities with the home composter
• The Lomi-approved certification program
• Compostable materials for everyday life increasing with consumer demand
• Responsibility of the consumer vs. responsibility of the manufacturer
• The issue of plastic water bottles being recycled into clothing
• Can technology help with the current problem of plastic on the planet?

Connect with Jeremy:

• Pela's Website
• Get your own Lomi Composter!
• On Instagram @pelacase and @getlomi

This episode is Sponsored by True Leaf Market:

Use our promo code: TGD10 - for $10 off an order of $50 or more (expires June 15th. Limit to one use per customer) at https://www.trueleafmarket.com/

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Original music by John Kingsley. The Good Dirt podcast is edited and engineered by Aleksandra van der Westhuizen and produced by Mary Ball. The Good Dirt is a part of the Connectd Podcasts Network.

Statements in this podcast have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration and are not to be considered as medical or nutritional advice. This information is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease, and should not be considered above the advice of your physician. Consult a medical professional when making dietary or lifestyle decisions that could affect your health and well-being.