Choosing the Best Food Recycler for Your Food Waste
Using a food recycler or composter is a fantastic way to reduce waste, improve your garden, and minimize your carbon footprint. But with so many composting options available, which one is right for you? We’re here to help you choose the right one for you.
The best food recycler
Lomi Food Recycler
Price: starting at $299
Community: Lomi is in more than 200,000 happy homes!
Subscription: Not Required
Lomi transforms your food scraps into a garden-ready natural fertilizer all in a matter of hours: it’s clean, easy, and convenient. Plus, almost anything you eat can go into Lomi: from fruits and veggies to meat and dairy. Lomi uses Smart Cycles™ to run short and energy efficient cycles.
Compared to the others:
SUBSCRIPTION: Not required. Lomi uses activated carbon filters so your home stays smelling fresh: replace after 45 cycles (Filter Refills, $29.99)
SIZE: Lomi is compact which means it’s not taking up valuable space in your kitchen and weighs under 20 pounds so it can easily be moved.
MODELS: Lomi has 2 models, a connected and a non-connected version which means you have more choice to find what’s right for you.
The electric garbage can
Electric Kitchen Bins
Price: $999
Community: In only a few thousand houses
Subscription: Required
Electric kitchen bins mill your food scraps turning them into grounds. The grounds sit in the bin for many weeks before the users must package them and send them back to the company to be repurposed: food grounds are not recommended for garden use.
Compared to the others:
SUBSCRIPTION: Required to have the grounds repurposed. If you have chickens for your grounds you don’t need a subscription, otherwise, each month subscription adds $35+ of costs for you.
SIZE: Over 3 feet tall and weighing 68 pounds, it is difficult to move around and takes up a lot of space.
MODELS: One.
The best compost bin
Traditional Compost
Price: Up to $700 to get started
Traditional backyard composting or its outdoor alternative, vermicomposting (which uses worms to break down food scraps), entails a large space in your yard where you periodically mix the contents over a number of months to turn it into garden-ready compost.
Compared to the others:
SUBSCRIPTION: None available. You must purchase anything required individually and when you remember to.
SIZE: Recommended to be 5 feet high and five feet wide - that’s a lot of smelly food decomposing in your yard and attracting animals!
MODELS: There are lots of ways to do traditional compost from tumblers to worms. Each one requires regular manual labor to turn and rotate to ensure proper aeration.
As seen on
Price
Footprint
Color
Usability
Material Compatibility
End Product
Smart Technology
Environmental
Impact
Rewards Program
$399
+ filter cost
Compact, fits
any kitchen
Compact,
fits any kitchen
White, Sage,
Black, Taupe
White, Sage,
Black, Taupe
One simple button
+ optional app experience
One simple
button +
optional
app experience
Food scraps,
flowers, plants
Food scraps,
flowers,
plants
Nutrient-rich plant food
can used for lawns, gardens,
or added to your green bin
Nutrient Rich
Plant Food
Smart Cycles,
Save energy
Smart Cycles,
Save energy
Low, no transport
needed
Low,
no transport
needed
Earn points,
redeem rewards
Earn points,
redeem
rewards
$999
+ filter cost
Bulky, like a
full-sized
trash can
Bulky,
like a full-sized trash can
One color
One
color
App required to operate
App required
to operate
Food scraps only
Food
scraps only
Chicken Feed -
Requires shipping
Chicken feed -
requires
shipping
Energy-efficient
cycles
Energy-
efficient
cycles
High, requires
shipping
None
$799
+ filter cost
41% larger
footprint than Lomi
41% larger
footprint
than Lomi
White or Black
Limited
colors
Button-operated
Button-
operated
Food scraps only
Food
scraps only
Limited usability
Limited
usability
No smart features
No
smart
features
Requires disposal
Requires
disposal
None
Upgrade your kitchen and garden with Lomi
1000+ Lomi’s bought this past week
Kitchen Countertop
Food Recycler
Kitchen Countertop
Food Recycler
Say goodbye to smelly trash
Reduce your waste
Simple and easy to use
Less time and energy
Worth every penny!
Absolutely amazing! It's magical how such a large volume of food waste can be converted into such a small amount of soil, in such a short period of time!
- Becky S.
Instant gratification meets doing good for the planet
Instant gratification meets doing good for the planet and my garden? What else can you ask for?
- Gary S.
My new best friend
This is the coolest thing ever. Literally ever. It’s my new best friend and my girlfriend is jealous.
- Max N.