COMPOST CRUSADER

What COMPOST CRUSADER does

Compost Crusader LLC is a privately held, woman-owned composting collection and haulage service founded in 2014 by Melissa Tashjian and headquartered in St. Francis, Wisconsin. The company collects food scraps and organic material from residential subscribers, commercial customers (restaurants, corporate offices, production facilities, breweries), schools, apartment/condo complexes, and special events across southeastern Wisconsin (Milwaukee, Shorewood, Wauwatosa, Racine, Waukesha). All collected material is transported to Blue Ribbon Organics, a DNR-licensed compost facility in Caledonia, WI, where it undergoes 4-6 months of processing before being sold back as finished compost to subscribers and retail customers.

The business operates a vertically organized service stack: curbside subscription pickups (residential at under $5/week, plus commercial contract pricing), free and paid self-drop programs through municipal partnerships, special event composting (25-300+ guests), school programs with educational resources and fundraisers, an online shop for finished compost and BPI/ASTM D6400-certified compostable bags, and gift certificates. Differentiators cited by the company include a trained-driver contamination detection system with customer notification, a customer portal for diversion-weight tracking, and a network of municipal partnerships providing free drop-off access in Milwaukee and Waukesha ($30/year in Racine). Reported outcomes include 358,000 pounds diverted in 2018 and 100% customer referral rates from surveys.

Commercially, the company pursues three distinct go-to-market motions: direct-to-consumer subscription (residential and SMB), sales-led commercial onboarding with on-site waste assessments and staff training, and event-driven services with custom bin delivery and product sales. Revenue is spread across recurring subscription fees, one-time product sales, and contract-based commercial services. The company is actively fundraising via Donately to construct its own compost processing site — a move that would vertically integrate the bottleneck currently held by Blue Ribbon Organics and address the constraint that only one DNR-approved site exists in southeastern Wisconsin.

Name

COMPOST CRUSADER

Legal name

Compost Crusader LLC

Website

https://compostcrusader.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2014

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Compost Crusader is a privately held, woman-owned curbside composting collection service founded in 2014 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. It serves residential, commercial, school, and event customers across southeastern Wisconsin, hauling food scraps to Blue Ribbon Organics for processing into finished compost.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Composting and Organic Waste Collection Services

NAICS

Waste Collection (56211), Solid Waste Collection (562111)

SIC

Refuse Systems (4953), Sanitary Services (4950)

akta.pro primary industry

Organics (Food/Yard) Collection (Residential & Commercial) (EUAIAAAO)

akta.pro secondary industries

Residential Curbside Organics Programs (Municipal/Franchise) (BPALAEAF), Compost Product Distribution, Retail & Landscape Supply (Bulk/Bagged) (BPALAEAI), Organics & Composting Programs (Food Waste, Green Waste) (BPABALAC), Sustainability, Waste Reduction & Composting Programs (EDALADAL)

Keywords

• Curbside composting service
• Food waste diversion
• Organic waste collection
• Commercial composting pickup
• Finished compost sales

Headquarters

HQ city

St. Francis

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices6 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Residential Curbside Composting Subscription: Weekly or bi-weekly curbside pickup service for single-family homes with 32-gallon or 64-gallon wheeled bins. Customers pay subscription fees and receive starter kits, access to customer portal, and discounts on finished compost purchases.
2. Commercial Composting Services: Custom composting solutions for restaurants, corporate offices, apartments/condos, and production facilities. Services include waste assessments, implementation planning, staff training, scheduled pickups, and documentation of diversion metrics.
3. Finished Compost Sales: Sale of finished organic compost in 5-gallon quantities (bring-your-own container) or 35 LB bags. Both retail customers and subscribers can purchase through the online shop with subscriber discounts.
4. Special Event Composting Services: Near-zero-waste event planning with bin delivery/pickup, compostable products sales, staff training, and on-site support. Services scaled for small gatherings (25-300 guests) and large-scale events (300+).
5. Self-Drop Food Scrap Collection: Municipal partnership program where customers deposit food scraps at designated drop-off locations. Free programs available for Milwaukee and Waukesha residents; $30/year for Racine locations.
6. Gift Certificates: Gift certificates redeemable for new or renewal compost subscriptions, finished compost, compostable items, and special event services.
7. School Fundraiser Program: Compost fundraisers to help schools offset costs of their composting program through partner fundraising initiatives.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Compost Crusader provides recurring curbside collection of food scraps and organic material from residential homes, multi-unit dwellings, restaurants, schools, corporate offices, and production facilities across southeastern Wisconsin. Collected material is hauled to a DNR-licensed composting facility (Blue Ribbon Organics, Caledonia, WI) for 4–6 month processing. The company also sells finished compost, BPI/ASTM D6400-certified compostable bags, wheeled bins, and gift certificates, and operates community self-drop sites in partnership with municipalities.

Product overview

Compost Crusader is a composting collection and waste diversion service provider offering a unified suite of residential and commercial composting solutions across southeastern Wisconsin. The core offering consists of curbside pickup services for food scraps and yard debris, available to single-family homes, apartments/condos, restaurants, schools, corporate clients, production facilities, and event organizers. Supporting products include compostable bags (ASTM D6400 certified), wheeled bins in 32-gallon and 64-gallon sizes, finished compost for sale, and gift certificates. The company operates a customer portal for account management and tracking diversion weights, and partners with municipalities for food scrap drop-off sites. Services are delivered through scheduled pickups with waste assessments, implementation support, staff training, and signage provided as part of the offering.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Residential Curbside Compost Service Weekly or bi-weekly curbside collection of food scraps and yard debris from single-family homes using 32- or 64-gallon wheeled bins, with a customer portal for diversion-weight tracking.
• Apartment and Condo Composting Service Multi-dwelling unit composting with locked, wheeled bins placed in shared disposal areas, offering weekly (warmer months) or bi-weekly (colder months) pickup service for apartment and condo buildings.
• Restaurant Composting Service Commercial composting for restaurants including waste assessments, compostable bags and receptacles, staff training, and scheduled pickups designed to divert up to 80% of waste from landfills.
• Corporate Composting Service Commercial composting solutions for businesses of any size, including waste assessments, implementation plans, scheduled pickups, staff training, and signage.
• Production Facilities Composting Service Composting solutions for breweries, food processors, and production facilities including waste assessments, implementation support, scheduled pickups, and community donations of finished compost.
• School Composting Service School composting programs featuring collection services, educational materials, cafeteria guides, and compost fundraisers to help offset program costs for K-12 institutions.
• Special Event Near-Zero-Waste Service Comprehensive event composting services for gatherings of 25-300+ guests, including bin delivery and pickup, staff training, signage, and compostable foodware for weddings, festivals, and corporate events.
• Self-Drop Food Scrap Collection Service Food scrap drop-off service at partner sites across Milwaukee, Racine, Waukesha, and Shorewood for residents without curbside service access; free for Milwaukee and Waukesha residents, $30/year for Racine.
• Finished Compost Finished organic compost for purchase in 5-gallon bring-your-own-container quantities or 35-pound bags, sourced from Blue Ribbon Organics in Caledonia, WI, with subscriber discounts available.

Quantifiable outcome

• 358,000 pounds of organic waste diverted from landfills in one year (2018)
• +6 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments8 records

Ideal customer profiles6 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Blue Ribbon OrganicscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2008Blue Ribbon Organics is a DNR-licensed yard and food waste compost facility in Caledonia, WI that processes all of Compost Crusader's collected organic material for 4-6 months. Their mission is to offer honest, reliable, and flexible service producing 100% organic compost for gardeners and homeowners.
• Kompost KidsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerVolunteer-run nonprofit organization dedicated to transforming waste streams through active landfill diversion and local disposal of food residuals. Their mission is to educate the public about benefits of compost and reclaim organic materials from landfills.
• City of Milwaukee Department of Public WorkscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with FEED MKE and City of Milwaukee DPW to provide free food scrap drop-off locations for Milwaukee residents during 2025-2026. Multiple drop-off sites established across the city.
• Racine Interfaith CoalitioncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with Racine Interfaith Coalition to provide food scrap drop-off locations in Racine area at North Pointe Church, First Baptist Church, and Christ Church for $30/year.
• Waukesha Department of Public WorkscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with Waukesha DPW for free food scrap drop-off program at City of Waukesha Drop Off Center (750 Sentry Drive) for Waukesha residents.
• Shorewood FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Shorewood Foundation to provide free food scrap drop-off at Shorewood Farmers Market location for market visitors during open season.
• US Composting CouncilminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCompost Crusader provides composting resources and services ranging from pickup to staff training and program implementation assistance, in alignment with US Composting Council standards.
• Wisconsin DNRcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCompost Crusader operates in compliance with Wisconsin DNR regulations and works toward the state's diversion goals. Currently only one DNR-approved compost site exists in southeastern Wisconsin.
• Green & Healthy Schools WisconsinminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRecognition program for K-12 public and private schools reducing environmental impact and costs, improving health and wellness, and increasing sustainability literacy through voluntary web-based application.

Scale indicators11 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Others

• Kompost Kids: Milwaukee-based volunteer-run nonprofit dedicated to landfill diversion and public education on composting. Mission-aligned ecosystem partner rather than a competitor; relevant as a community engagement and referral channel.

Direct peers

• Bootstrap Compost: Residential and commercial curbside composting subscription service in the Washington D.C. region. Directly comparable in GTM motion, subscription pricing, and contamination-control workflow.
• CompostNow: Subscription-based residential and commercial curbside food scrap collection service operating across multiple U.S. metros. Closest direct competitor by business model, target customer (residential + restaurants/offices), and recurring subscription revenue.
• Veteran Compost: Mid-Atlantic residential and commercial curbside compost collection service with subscription model and educational programming. Comparable in service structure, customer segmentation, and mission-driven positioning.

Broad incumbents

• Republic Services: Major publicly traded environmental services provider with recycling and organics hauling capabilities. Represents broad-incumbent competition that could absorb municipal organics contracts Compost Crusader currently serves.
• Casella Waste Systems: Large publicly traded regional solid waste and recycling hauler with growing organics/composting services. Represents the broad-incumbent competitive threat as it expands organics offerings across the Northeast and Midwest.
• Waste Management: Largest North American waste and environmental services provider with organic materials/composting programs serving commercial and municipal customers. Broad-incumbent competitor with potential to displace smaller haulers via bundled municipal contracts.

Regional players

• Save That Stuff: Massachusetts-based commercial organics and recycling hauler serving restaurants, institutions, and events. Comparable in commercial customer onboarding workflow and educational programming, though operating in a different geography.
• Rust Belt Riders: Cleveland-based residential and commercial composting subscription service with bike-powered pickup model. Comparable in subscription-based residential composting GTM and educational programming.

Emerging players

• Blue Ribbon Organics: DNR-licensed yard and food waste compost processor in Caledonia, WI — Compost Crusader's exclusive processing partner. Comparable as a vertically adjacent organics player, though operating upstream in the value chain.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/compost-crusader

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about COMPOST CRUSADER