Milwaukee-based Sendik’s Food Markets reports that it is recycling food waste into energy by installing InSinkErator’s Grind2Energy system in all 12 of its metro area stores. The system diverts grinds food waste and stores it in tanks on the property. The waste is then trucked to an anaerobic digester facility where it is converted into biogas and fertilizer, Sendik’s reports.

The waste that is ground by the Grind2Energy system at Sendik’s stores is processed at the Forest County Potawatomi digester in Forest County, Wisconsin, that was built two years ago. The biogas produced there is sold to Milwaukee-based We Energies, going back into the region’s power grid.

The company says the annual impact of using Grind2Energy at all 12 Sendik’s stores is equivalent to eliminating 4.7 million car miles worth of greenhouse gas emissions. The food scraps will create enough natural gas annually to heat 1,500 homes for one month and generate more than 407,000 pounds of fertilizer.

Nick Balistreri, Sendik’s family co-owner, observes, “Our family lives in this community and we’re committed to making Milwaukee a better place for our neighbors.”

Balistreri notes that Sendik’s stores have been composting their food waste for more than three years and now the Grind2Energy program will allow the company to do even more to reduce its environmental impact. He points to the Sendik’s Mequon store where the company launched the pilot Grind2Energy program last November. Before starting to use the system, Balistreri says, the store required eight 30-yard trash compactor trucks a month to handle their waste. Now they only need one per month.

The company says the Grind2Energy system will be up and running in all 12 Sendik’s locations by the end of September. Already in 2015, more than 332 tons of food scraps have been transformed into renewable energy, Balistreri says. While Grind2Energy ensures that no food waste ends up in landfills, Sendik’s also makes sure no edible food leftovers go to waste, donating those to the eastern Wisconsin branch of Feeding America, the nationwide network of local food banks.

“This program is popular with the associates at our stores and blends seamlessly into our operations,” Balistreri says. “It’s really a win-win for everyone concerned.”