Black Bear Composting
Black Bear Composting is a Central Virginia organics recycler that collects residential and commercial food scraps, yard waste, and clean wood at its 47-acre Crimora facility, processes them via windrow composting into STA-certified finished compost, and sells the compost and Garden Blend to consumers and landscapers.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2010
- HeadquartersCrozet, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingServices
What Black Bear Composting does
Black Bear Composting is a privately-held organics recycling company founded in 2010 and headquartered in Crozet, Virginia, with composting operations conducted on a 47-acre farm in Crimora, Augusta County. The company collects food scraps, yard trimmings, and clean waste wood from residential households, commercial businesses (including grocery stores, restaurants, and schools), and commercial tipping accounts (tree care services, landscapers, utilities, municipalities, and agricultural operations) across Central Virginia — specifically the Charlottesville, Crozet, Waynesboro, Staunton, and Harrisonburg areas. Eric Walter serves as Co-Founder and Chief Composting Officer, and the company operates with 1-10 employees.
The company applies a commercial-scale windrow composting process built around a five-step controlled biological decomposition methodology (Inspect, Mix, Monitor, Age, Screen). Materials are blended according to proprietary carbon-to-nitrogen recipes, placed in long windrows covered by engineered waterproof and breathable geotextile, and monitored daily for temperature, oxygen, and moisture using a tractor-pulled windrow turner. Inputs are aged for six months to improve structure and plant-available nitrogen, then screened to 3/8 inch to produce US Composting Council Seal of Testing Assurance (STA)-certified finished compost. The company holds no patents but operates proprietary process know-how centered on recipe formulation and aging discipline.
Black Bear generates revenue through four streams: (1) residential subscriptions at $23-$26 per month plus a $25 one-time sign-up fee for curbside collection; (2) commercial collection contracts providing 65-gallon wheeled carts, training, signage, and scheduled pickup; (3) commercial tipping fees for account holders dropping off organic materials; and (4) finished product sales of Black Bear Compost ($38-$40/CY) and Black Bear Garden Blend ($58-$60/CY), available via facility pickup or company dump-truck delivery at $3.55/mile. Residential signup is self-serve through an online portal, while commercial accounts are managed via field sales.
Black Bear Composting firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Black Bear Composting
- Legal name
- Black Bear Composting
- Website
- https://blackbearcomposting.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2010
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Black Bear Composting is a Central Virginia organics recycler that collects residential and commercial food scraps, yard waste, and clean wood at its 47-acre Crimora facility, processes them via windrow composting into STA-certified finished compost, and sells the compost and Garden Blend to consumers and landscapers.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Black Bear Composting industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Organics Recycling and Composting Services
- NAICS
- Compost Manufacturing (325315), Solid Waste Collection (562111)
- SIC
- Refuse Systems (4953)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Organics Collection & Processing (Composting/Anaerobic Digestion) (IMAIAFAF)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Organics & Composting Programs (Food Waste, Green Waste) (BPABALAC), Compost Product Distribution, Retail & Landscape Supply (Bulk/Bagged) (BPALAEAI), Compost & Compost Blends (AFABADAE)
Keywords
Where Black Bear Composting is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Crozet
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices2 records
Markets served
Black Bear Composting business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Operations, Personnel, Supply Chain, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Residential Subscription Service: Monthly subscription fees for curbside composting collection. Small bin (5 gallon, weekly pickup) at $23/month; Large bin (65 gallon, biweekly pickup) at $26/month. Includes one-time $25 new member fee, compostable liners, and annual free compost for members.
- Compost Product Sales: Sale of finished compost products to consumers and landscapers. Black Bear Compost (screened to 3/8 inch) at $38/CY delivered or $40/CY picked up. Black Bear Garden Blend (70% compost, 30% topsoil) at $58/CY delivered or $60/CY picked up. Delivery by company dump truck up to 10 CY capacity.
- Tipping Fees (Commercial): Fees charged to commercial customers for accepting organic materials at the facility. Wood chips, ground wood, leaves and yard trimmings accepted at $0/cubic yard. Food processing and source-separated food scraps require contact for pricing.
- Delivery Services: Delivery of compost products by company dump truck at $3.55/mile plus tax, with 3 CY minimum per delivery.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Monthly | Small Bin Residential - 5 gallon sealed bin with weekly pickup |
| Subscription | Monthly | Large Bin Residential - 65 gallon wheeled bin with biweekly pickup |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Black Bear Compost - Screened to 3/8 inch finished compost |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Black Bear Garden Blend - 70% compost and 30% local topsoil blend |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Tipping Fees - Yard Trimmings |
| Usage-based | Pay-as-you-go | Tipping Fees - Food Scraps |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels6 records
Black Bear Composting product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Black Bear Composting collects food scraps, yard trimmings, and clean waste wood from residential and commercial customers in Central Virginia and processes them into finished compost and a 70/30 compost-topsoil garden blend at its 47-acre Crimora, Virginia facility. The company sells collection subscriptions and tipping services, and markets the resulting STA-certified compost products to consumers, landscapers, and agricultural buyers with pickup or dump-truck delivery.
Product overview
Black Bear Composting is an organics recycling company offering a unified service portfolio centered on collecting and processing food scraps, yard trimmings, and clean waste wood into finished compost products. The core service offerings include: Residential Collection Service (small 5-gallon bin or large 65-gallon bin for curbside pickup), Commercial Collection Program (65-gallon wheeled carts with scheduled collection), and Tipping & Acceptance Service (facility drop-off for account holders). The product line includes two compost offerings: Black Bear Compost (finished screened compost, STA-certified) and Black Bear Garden Blend (70% compost, 30% topsoil blend), available for customer pickup or delivered via the company's dump truck. The collection services, tipping acceptance, and compost products form an integrated circular system where collected organics are processed and returned to customers as soil amendments.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Residential Collection Service Curbside organics collection service for residential customers in Charlottesville, Crozet, Waynesboro, Staunton, and Harrisonburg areas. Two subscription tiers: a small 5-gallon sealed bin with weekly pickup and a large 65-gallon wheeled bin with biweekly pickup. Bins, compostable liners, and pickup are included; subscriptions bill monthly with a one-time $25 new member fee.
- Commercial Collection Program Organics collection service for commercial customers such as grocery stores, restaurants, and schools. The program provides 65-gallon wheeled carts, compostable bags, staff training, signage, regular scheduled collection, and clean cart swaps. Registered with the Virginia Green Suppliers Network as a sustainability service.
- Tipping & Acceptance Service Facility drop-off service for commercial account holders to deliver organic materials — wood chips, ground wood, leaves, yard trimmings, food processing wastes, source-separated food scraps, and crop residues — to the Crimora composting facility. Yard trimmings are accepted at $0/cubic yard; food processing and source-separated food scraps pricing is by contact.
- Black Bear Compost (finished compost product) Finished compost screened to 3/8 inch, made from local food scraps, leaves, and greenwaste. US Composting Council Seal of Testing Assurance (STA) certified. Suitable for soil improvement for fruits, vegetables, trees, shrubs, and lawns. Sold at $40/CY picked up or $38/CY delivered.
- Black Bear Garden Blend (compost-topsoil blend) Garden blend composed of 70% Black Bear Compost and 30% local topsoil. Designed for raised beds, tree planting, and general landscaping soil applications. Sold at $60/CY picked up or $58/CY delivered.
- Dump Truck Delivery Service Delivery of Black Bear Compost or Garden Blend by company dump truck (up to 10 CY of compost or 8 CY of garden blend per load). $3.55/mile delivery charge plus tax, with a 3 CY minimum per delivery.
Quantifiable outcome
- Organics make up over a third of the waste stream (over half if including paper)
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Black Bear Composting
Customer profileNamed customers8 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Black Bear Composting technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
Black Bear Composting partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Coker Composting & ConsultingcoreBlack Bear Composting retained the services of Coker Composting & Consulting during the company's founding in 2010 to immerse themselves in the world of composting.
- US Composting CouncilcoreBlack Bear Composting is a proud member of the US Composting Council. The company participates in the Council's Seal of Testing Assurance (STA) program, which was derived by a consensus of leading compost scientists and helps compost buyers identify producers holding themselves to a higher level of accountability.
- Virginia Green Suppliers NetworkcoreBlack Bear Composting's commercial collection program is registered with the Virginia Green Suppliers Network as a service that helps businesses with their sustainability efforts. Go (Virginia) Green!
- Poplar Manor EnterprisesminorBlack Bear Composting was initially inspired by Poplar Manor Enterprises' food scrap collection program at Virginia Tech, which served as a model for the company's founding.
Scale indicators3 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Black Bear Composting competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Veteran Compost: Veteran-owned residential and commercial composting company serving Maryland and the mid-Atlantic with curbside collection and finished compost products — closely mirrors Black Bear's subscription collection + product sales model.
- Atlas Organics: South Carolina-based organics recycling company providing residential and commercial collection plus finished compost products across multiple states — directly comparable vertically integrated model.
- Compost Cab: Washington DC-area subscription compost pickup service for households and businesses, with finished compost returned to subscribers — directly comparable residential/commercial subscription GTM.
- Bootstrap Compost: Long Island subscription-based residential and commercial compost collection service with finished compost products — direct competitor in the small-scale urban/suburban curbside composting niche.
- Rust Belt Riders: Cleveland-based residential and commercial organics collection service producing finished compost and soil blends — closely matches Black Bear's integrated collection-to-product circular model.
Broad incumbents
- Casella Waste Systems: Northeast-focused waste and recycling company with organics recycling services including curbside residential collection in several states — competes for similar commercial and municipal accounts in adjacent regions.
- Waste Management Inc. Largest North American waste hauler with an established organics recycling and composting services division — operates in adjacent space at scale and represents both potential competition and a partner/acquirer for regional composters like Black Bear.
- Republic Services: Major US waste and recycling company with organics processing operations and a sustainability-focused commercial customer base — overlaps with Black Bear on commercial organics collection and finished compost supply.
Emerging players
- Tilth Soil: Pacific Northwest producer of compost and specialty soil blends for landscapers and home gardeners — comparable on the finished-product side of Black Bear's business, with partial overlap on the commercial composting side.
Regional players
- Natural Resources Recovery: Virginia-based environmental services company offering organics recycling, compost production, and erosion control products — serves the same mid-Atlantic geography with overlapping collection and finished-product offerings.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Black Bear Composting social profiles
Digital presenceBlack Bear Composting compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance2 records
Black Bear Composting financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Black Bear Composting leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
Black Bear Composting funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Black Bear Composting M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Black Bear Composting
What does Black Bear Composting do?
Black Bear Composting collects food scraps, yard trimmings, and clean waste wood from residential and commercial customers in Central Virginia and processes them into finished compost and a 70/30 compost-topsoil garden blend at its 47-acre Crimora, Virginia facility. The company sells collection subscriptions and tipping services, and markets the resulting STA-certified compost products to consumers, landscapers, and agricultural buyers with pickup or dump-truck delivery.
Is Black Bear Composting a public or private company?
Black Bear Composting is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Black Bear Composting founded?
Black Bear Composting was founded in 2010. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Black Bear Composting based?
Black Bear Composting is headquartered in Crozet, United States, in the North America region.
How does Black Bear Composting make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Residential Subscription Service is the primary driver. The others are compost Product Sales, tipping Fees (Commercial) and delivery Services.
Who are Black Bear Composting's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Veteran Compost, Atlas Organics, Compost Cab, Bootstrap Compost and Rust Belt Riders. Broad incumbents are Casella Waste Systems, Waste Management Inc. and Republic Services. Tilth Soil is listed as an emerging player. Natural Resources Recovery is listed as a regional player.
Does Black Bear Composting have an API?
No public API is recorded for Black Bear Composting.
What industry is Black Bear Composting in?
Black Bear Composting's product category is Organics Recycling and Composting Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is IMAIAFAF, Organics Collection & Processing (Composting/Anaerobic Digestion), with a secondary code of BPABALAC, Organics & Composting Programs (Food Waste, Green Waste). Its NAICS code is 325315 and its SIC code is 4953.