Transforming campus food waste into fertilizer with innovative anaerobic digesters
After winning the Pitt Sustainability Challenge in 2023, Ecotone Renewables launched two of five anaerobic digesters at Pitt at Posvar Hall and Sutherland Hall. Co-founded by Pitt alum Kyle Wyche, Ecotone Renewables is expanding its organic recycling units across Pitt campuses, contributing to the University’s broader waste reduction and goal to reach carbon neutrality by 2037. The two anaerobic digesters on Pitt’s campus divert an average of 2,000 pounds of organic material from landfills each month during the academic year.
Why Anaerobic Digestion?
- 30% of all food in America goes to waste, with 13% coming from higher education dining halls. That means roughly 22 million pounds of food from college campuses is tossed annually.
- Ecotone’s Zero Emissions Upcycling Systems (ZEUS) convert food and other organic materials into a nutrient-rich fertilizer, Soil Sauce, using microbes in an oxygen-free environment.
- Anaerobic digestion supports Pitt’s goal to reduce landfilled materials 25% by 2030 (from 2017 levels).
Posvar Hall
- Operational since: November 2024
- Inputs: Organic waste from campus coffee carts and the Ethel’s mobile food venue (~40 lbs/week)
- Location: Visible from the Posvar Hall loading dock, partially extended outward for venting and rainwater capture
Sutherland Hall
- Operational since: September 2025
- Inputs: Organic waste from Sutherland Market cafe and the Perch, Pitt’s second largest dining hall (~375 lbs/week)
- Location: Behind the residence hall next to an equipment shed and parking area
