Who is required to separate
- All food service establishments: restaurants, cafes, bars, bakeries, delis, grocery stores
- Hotels with food service operations
- Any business generating more than 100 lbs of organic waste per week
Office buildings with cafeterias are typically covered by building-level compliance, not tenant-level. Small offices with only a break room coffee maker are not targeted.
What counts as organic
- Food scraps (peels, cores, bones, shells)
- Food-soiled paper (greasy pizza boxes, soiled napkins, paper plates)
- Coffee grounds and filters
- Eggshells
- Tea bags
- Yard waste where applicable
What does not go in: plastic, glass, metal, styrofoam. Contamination (non-organic items in the organics bin) is its own violation even if the rest of your compliance is fine.
How to comply
- Get a clearly labeled organics bin (brown or green recommended) separate from trash and recycling.
- Set out the organics container on your DSNY collection day. DSNY picks up organics with the recycling collection.
- Train all staff: food scraps and soiled paper go in organics, plastic and glass do not.
- If using a private hauler, confirm BIC registration for organics collection and keep a service contract.
Fine schedule
| First offense | $25 |
| Second offense | $50 |
| Third and subsequent | $100 per violation |
| Contamination (wrong items in organics bin) | $25 to $100 |
The fines are modest compared to CWZ or DOHMH, but DSNY issued over 1,885 organics summonses in the first 7 days of enforcement in the Bronx zones alone. This is enforced at scale.
Source
Local Law 85 of 2023 · NYC Admin Code §16-306.1 · DSNY Organics Program.