Madison: Recycle Your Pumpkins This Season

MADISON, NJ – Madison is recycling pumpkins to feed cows and other farm animals, a project that is a partnership with the Madison Environmental Commission, the Department of Public Works and Vacchiano Farm, LLC, owned by the Vacchiano family of Madison.

Pumpkins, including those that have been carved into jack o’ lanterns, can be taken to Madison Department of Public Works, located 34 John Ave. on two separate weekends. The first collection will occur after Halloween on Nov. 9 and 10, with the second collection occurring after Thanksgiving on Dec. 7 and 8. Recycled pumpkins will be collected by Vacchiano Farm, and used as food for farm animals, and compost for fields.

“Pumpkins should not be bleached, painted or varnished,” Elizabeth Vacchiano said. “Decayed or moldy pumpkins are fine to be recycled, we’ll compost those as fertilizer in our fields."

For those who did not know, cows love pumpkins. Vacchiano said that, “pumpkins have sugar in them. We do not typically feed our animals pumpkins through the year, so the cows, sheep, turkeys and chickens get excited about a novel treat.”

Superintendent of the Department of Public Works Ken O’Brien said the pumpkin recycling project an innovative way to cut food waste.

“Madison already accepts pumpkins as part of our yard waste,” O’Brien said. “This project puts the pumpkins to work as food and compost, while reducing the DPW workload.”

For questions about pumpkin recycling, contact the Madison Department of Public Works at (973) 593-3088, or Vacchiano Farm at Vacchianofarm@optonline.net.

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