Vita Nova Compost is a curbside compost collection service that aims to divert organic waste from landfills and convert it into nutrient-rich compost using worms, known as vermicomposting. The business is owned by James Cruso, a Westerly native and avid environmentalist. He is motivated by the country’s waste issue, noting that a family of four can create 400-800 pounds of organic waste per year.

“Worm farming is big on the west coast. I was on the west coast for a couple of years with a friend and we experimented with planting and vegetables,” said James. “We went to a soil symposium led by Dr. Elaine Ingham. She’s part of the organization called Soil Food Web and they preach vermicomposting. When I moved back home to Westerly I wanted to run my own business and this was the perfect business because it’s zero waste and I can feel good about doing it every day.”

James grew up and went to school in Westerly before getting a degree in civil engineering from Wentworth College in Boston.

“I grew up here and went to Westerly High School and love this town. It’s a great place. My grandfather was Rhode Island State Senator Frank Gencarelli and my grandmother was Senator Jane Gencarelli. I bounced around for a few years before I came back and worked for my Dad’s company for a little bit. Then I went to the west coast because I wanted to travel and see some of the country. Two years ago I moved home and got my first thousand worms and an 18-gallon bin and just started there.”

James found out about the Westerly Land Trust’s community garden and contacted them about renting one of their garden plots.

“I wanted to rent one of the plots at the original community garden and got on their email list. They needed volunteers at the farmer’s market and we started talking. I told them I was getting into worm composting and a few months later they sent out a request for proposal to local farmers. I put my presentation together, some renderings of the greenhouse, and told them it would be low impact and off-grid from their system which they accepted.”

With the help of family and friends, James erected a greenhouse.

James explained the vermicomposting process: “The worms we use are the red wigglers, and they’re the worms that most worm farmers are using. They’re a temperate species and there are about a thousand worms per square foot in each bed. When we collect our waste from residents, the raw organic waste, food scraps, they’re combined with recovered leaves, mulch, or straw.

“That mixture is combined with water and air and it breaks down for about 60 days. That becomes worm food and we feed it to them. The worm’s waste product, their castings, which is vermicompost, is created inside the body of a worm. It’s a great nutrient source for plants. It ends up filtering down through the bottom of the bed and is collected underneath, dried, sifted, and bagged.”

Through our membership model, clients choose a plan, either weekly or bi-weekly, and then receive a composting kit and a collection bucket. The membership includes participants receiving 40 pounds of finished compost per year, 20 pounds in the spring, and 20 pounds in the early summer.

“Every Monday morning we go around and we collect the five-gallon pails. People put their raw food in there. We have some teachers that are members and they teach their students. They’re becoming involved and familiar with the idea that your food waste is not trash. From bucket to finished soil bag it takes about five to six months and seven pounds of waste to make one pound of finished product.”

So far, in 2020 alone, James and Vita Nova Compost have diverted over 53,000 pounds of our community’s organic waste from our local landfill where it would have emitted dangerous gases into our atmosphere, lowered air quality, depleted the ozone layer, and wasted valuable resources.

“There are two ways that this process sequesters carbon,” James explained. “First, you’re not releasing as much into the environment as it breaks down. Second, when you have finished product, you put back on the earth, and in the soil, the carbon that’s in the air is captured and sequestered by the compost on the ground. It’s very powerful stuff and a great system that happens naturally with just a little bit of human help.”

“It’s still a work in progress,” said James. “We’re not there yet but it’s the foundation of what I want to do.  I believe when we get to where we want to be and totally functioning we’re going to have a really great thing going. I’m very excited about it. I love it and I’m really happy to be doing it.”

For more information about Vita Nova Compost or to become a member visit their website or contact James at vitanovacompost@gmail.com.