Launching the Green Loop: transforming local food waste into enriched soil
New Plymouth, Taranaki, a new social enterprise, Green Loop, is launching to provide Taranaki businesses with a simple, local solution to food waste.
Every year, tonnes of food scraps from the region’s cafés, hotels, breweries, and offices are sent to landfill. The nearest site is 151 km away near Marton. If food waste is collected for processing elsewhere, it is often transported 294 km to Hampton Downs.
This not only generates high transport emissions, but also produces methane, a potent greenhouse gas, and robs local soils of valuable nutrients.
Green Loop, founded by Sustainable Taranaki’s Mieke Verschoor and Sophie Walker, is set to change that. Their service collects food waste from local businesses, pre-processes it using Bokashi fermentation, and then composts it with the Johnson Su method. The result is nutrient-dense, microbe-rich compost that is returned to Taranaki farms closing the loop from plate to paddock.
“For me, it’s a mindset,” says Mieke. “Calling organics ‘waste’ doesn’t feel right, because it isn’t. These scraps are a resource that can replenish our soils and support local food resilience.”
The inspiration for Green Loop was sparked during a 2024 sustainable business pilot, when waste audits revealed the sheer volume of organic material going to landfill.
Then a pivotal moment came later that year at the National Permaculture Hui in Taranaki, where Betsy and David Kettle of City to Farm, north of Auckland, shared their pioneering food scrap collection model.
Their kaupapa, turning food scraps into soil solutions, showed what was possible. Green Loop builds on that inspiration, tailoring the approach for Taranaki’s businesses and farmers.
“Businesses told us they wanted to act but had no easy, local solution,” says Sophie. “Green Loop makes it simple, we provide the bins, the collection, and the processing. Businesses get to reduce their impact, meet sustainability goals, and know their waste is helping build healthier soils.”
Green Loop is already working with local hospitality operators, a corporate office and a distillery and has strong interest across the food sector. With support from Toi Foundation and Wild for Taranaki, the initiative is positioned as shovel-ready climate action: reducing emissions, cutting landfill waste, and helping regenerate Taranaki’s soils.
