About CMA – Compost Manufacturing Alliance

What does CMA do?

CMA is a global leader in providing industrial composting facilities an acceptance standard for compostables by performing field disintegration testing through several prominent processing methods to ensure products sent to industrial compost facilities adequately break down within the production cycle. When products marked “compostable” by packaging industry standards are not also tested in real world processes, the result is costly to compost facility owners, end users and municipalities. Instead of a singular approach to compostables, CMA connects supply chain leaders with top compost manufacturing facilities nationwide to ensure mutual success as co-creators of compost and compostables.

How do we do it?

CMA’s team has pioneered the field-testing process and continues to extend that knowledge to a growing number of partner facilities across North America.

CMA receives samples, log them in, and places them at composting site(s) for testing. At the end of the composting cycle, items are sifted from the feedstock and presented in a detailed photo report providing pass/fail information.

CMA also offers technical support for meeting ASTM D6400 and D6868 requirements through our experienced technical team, while also working on a substrate innovation program for products in development.

THE GENESIS OF CMA

Learn about the beginnings of CMA, and see where we are headed in 2020 and beyond!

2007 – 2016

In 2007, Cedar Grove Composting began a compostables field testing program to develop lists of accepted compostables for its municipal partners and commercial accounts. This program became a nationally recognized standard in many cities and venues across the U.S.

2016

Cedar Grove and six partners come together and agree to expand field testing to other primary composting processing facilities in the U.S.

2017

The Compost Manufacturing Alliance forms a partnership between Cedar Grove Composting, A1 Organics, WeCare Denali, St. Louis Composting, New Earth and Olympic Organics.

2019 – 2020

The Compost Manufacturing Alliance completes the testing of over 2000 items throughout multiple processes, and adds its first Canadian testing affiliate, Walker Industries.

CMA and its partners are solution strategists working between the supply chain and solid waste system to create practical engagement models for zero waste success.

THE GENESIS OF CMA

2007 – 2016

2016

2017

2019 – 2020