EPA Region 3 Goes Behind the Scenes at Reading Terminal Market to Highlight Food Waste Solutions
Philadelphia market has diverted more than 1 million pounds of food waste from landfills through sustainability efforts
PHILADELPHIA – U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Mid-Atlantic Region (EPA) joined Reading Terminal Market Corporation (Reading Terminal Market) leaders and merchants for a behind-the-scenes tour of the historic Philadelphia market’s food waste diversion operations and sustainability programs, highlighting local solutions that are keeping food and organic materials out of landfills and putting those resources to better use.
Reading Terminal Market is a partner in EPA’s Feed It Onward initiative, a national effort that spotlights farmers, businesses, nonprofits, and communities working to reduce wasted food and ensure food resources are put to their highest and best use.
“Through Feed It Onward, we want to highlight successes like Reading Terminal Market and help inspire businesses across the region to put food to good use,” said EPA Mid-Atlantic Regional Administrator Amy Van Blarcom-Lackey. “More than one million pounds diverted from landfills is an impressive milestone, but what really stands out to me is how the merchants made these practices part of their everyday operations.”
During the tour, EPA representatives got an inside look at how Reading Terminal Market manages organic materials generated across one of the nation’s oldest and largest public markets. The tour included stops with participating merchants, including Iovine Brothers and Kamal’s Middle Eastern Specialties, to see how food waste diversion works at the individual merchant level.
The Market’s 2024 organics diversion pilot has already kept more than 1 million pounds of organic waste — roughly 50 loaded Philly trash trucks’ worth — out of landfills.
“Reading Terminal Market is committed to making a positive impact on the environment. We are not just one organization championing for change, but more than 80 small, family-owned businesses under one roof who have the potential to make a difference,” said Annie Allman, CEO and General Manager, Reading Terminal Market Corporation. “This has been a true team effort, internally with staff and merchants and externally with our partners at Mother Compost, Lifecycle Renewables, and Sharing Excess, and we’re not done yet. Part of the next chapter of sustainability at Reading Terminal is participation in the EPA’s Feed it Onward initiative, and we look forward to exploring even more ways to reduce waste and grow our positive environmental impact.”
Organics Diversion and Food Recovery at the Market
The pilot brings together merchants and outside partners to identify productive uses for material that otherwise might be discarded.
One component of the Market’s diversion effort involves separating food scraps and other organic materials for composting rather than disposal. Mother Compost, a local, woman-owned compost materials pick-up service, supports the commercial food waste diversion pilot program.
“Food is only wasted when we throw it in the trash,” said Gwenn Nolan, Founder and CEO of Mother Compost. “Reading Terminal Market has been at the heart of Philadelphia for more than a century, and its commitment to composting shows how a historic institution can also lead the way forward. We’re proud to partner with the Market to keep food scraps out of landfills and return their nutrients to our local soils.”
The Market is also exploring ways to recover value from organic materials through other beneficial uses, including the conversion of used cooking oil and other materials into renewable products.
"For more than four years, Lifecycle Renewables has collected tens of thousands of gallons of used cooking oil from the merchants at Reading Terminal Market,” said Rory Gaunt, CEO of Lifecycle Renewables, Inc. “ We process that oil into Truburn®, a renewable heating oil that fuels Philadelphia's district steam system, which heats the buildings where Philadelphians work, live, and play. We are proud to support the Market's diversion work, because it shows that what comes out of a busy kitchen can come right back to heat the city."
Broader sustainability efforts at the Market also prioritize keeping edible food from going to waste. Through its partnership with Sharing Excess, surplus food that remains safe and suitable to eat can be recovered and distributed to community organizations rather than discarded.
“Reading Terminal Market is a natural partner for Sharing Excess because we both believe good food should serve people, not landfills,” said Braden Walper, Retail Rescue Operations Manager at Sharing Excess. “By making it simple for Market merchants to share their surplus, we're able to quickly move fresh food to Philadelphians who can use it. We’re proud to support RTM’s one-million-pound food-diversion milestone and the meaningful impact it represents for our city.”
About Reading Terminal Market
One of America’s largest and oldest public markets, the Reading Terminal Market serves as a public trust providing a venue for independent local businesses to showcase the Philadelphia region’s culinary bounty and cultural diversity. Housed since 1892 in a National Historic Landmark building, the Market offers an incredible selection of farm fresh produce, meats, and poultry, plus the finest seafood, cheeses, baked goods, confections, flowers, jewelry, and crafts. The Market is managed by a not-for-profit management company as a tenant of the Pennsylvania Convention Center Authority, which has owned the historic Reading Terminal since 1990. In 2014, the American Planning Association named Reading Terminal Market as one of the 10 Great Public Spaces in America, and in 2021, 2022, and 2026 the Market was voted Best Public Market by USA Today’s 10Best.
Learn more about Reading Terminal Market’s sustainability efforts .
About Feed It Onward
EPA’s Feed It Onward initiative is a voluntary program that partners with farms, restaurants, grocery stores, food brands, and military bases donating food within their communities.
EPA has 12 Feed It Onward partners in Region 3:
- 412 Food Rescue (Pittsburgh/Southwest Pa.)
- Agri-Cycle (Mid-Atlantic Region)
- Association of Gleaning Organizations (Mid-Atlantic Region)
- Philadelphia Parks and Recreation Sustainability Division (Philadelphia, Pa.)
- Dog Tag (District of Columbia)
- EZ Composting (Greater Philadelphia)
- Food Connect Group (Greater Philadelphia)
- Food Donation Connection (Mid-Atlantic Region)
- Greasezilla (West Virginia)
- High Street Hospitality Group (Philadelphia, Pa.)
- Reading Terminal Market (Philadelphia, Pa.)
- Rolling Harvest Food Rescue (Greater Philadelphia)
Feed It Onward is part of the nation’s Freedom 250 celebration and highlights practical ways to keep food out of the waste stream, including donation, animal feed, composting and other uses.