Mayo Clinic housing worms for composting

Clinic supporting Hillview
Urban Agriculture Center

The Mayo Clinic Health System-Franciscan Healthcare is heading into the composting business.

A process called Vermicomposting, using worms to break down food waste, turning into compost called Vermigold, is now being housed by Mayo, to support the Hillview Urban Agricultural Center.

UW-L’s Larry Ringgenberg says that, in the past, the project received funding from community development block grants, but that is no longer available. So it has a new partner in Mayo to house the unit for its healthy food and gardening initiative.

Mayo took on nearly $30,000 in setup costs and will pay about $3,000 a year in maintenance, while Hillview will provide some of the oversight at a cost of about $1,000 per year.

To date, 38,350 pounds of food waste has been diverted from the garbage and turned into 10,000 pounds of fertilizer.

Worms, called the red wiggler, are used in Vermicomposting. The worms digest scraps, which is combined with sawdust to turn into a more nutritious compost that the traditional type.

Those in La Crosse using the Hillview facility include the Washburn gardeners, the Kane Street Community Garden, several schools, the Boys and Girls Club and the Mayo Square food garden. The compost is also sold at Ace Hardware of La Crosse and the People’s Food Co-op.