Acceptable compostable bags and liners
Using a compost bag is a great way to keep your kitchen pail and green cart clean, as well as reduce odours and pests. While bagging is helpful, it is not required.
NOTE: For the safety of your collector, the following items must be bagged: pet waste, kitty litter, animal bedding, sawdust and wood shavings, and cold barbeque or fireplaces ashes.
If you choose to use a liner, here are some options:
1. Certified compostable bags
When buying compostable bags, look for one of the following certified compostable logos on the box. The bags will usually be tinted (green, brown etc.) and will have the certified compostable logo(s) printed directly on the bag.
Here are some examples of certified compostable bags carried by retailers in Calgary. This is not a complete list - contact your preferred location to confirm product availability.
We regularly update the list of stores in Calgary to make sure their bags are certified compostable.
| Pet waste certified compostable bags | |
|---|---|
| Locations available | |
| Calgary Co-op | Pet Valu |
| Canadian Tire | Tail Blazers |
| Paws Pet Food & Accessories (Bio Bag is the only certified compostable bag available.) | Unleashed |
| PAWSitively Natural | Calgary Farmers' Market |
| Certified brands available (make sure certified compostable logo is on bag/box) | |
| BioBag dog waste bags | Pet waste compostable bags: Earth Rated dog waste bags (makes sure compostable logo is on bag/box) |
| beyondGREEN biotech pet waste bags | Pet waste compostable bags: SCHŒP |
| Pet waste compostable bags: LEAF dog waste bags | |
| Paper yard waste bags | |
|---|---|
| Paper yard waste bags: Locations available | |
| Paper yard waste bags: Canadian Tire | Paper yard waste bags: No Frills |
| Paper yard waste bags: Costco | Rona |
| Paper yard waste bags: Home Depot | Save on Foods |
| Paper yard waste bags: London Drugs | Superstore |
| Paper yard waste bags: Lowes | Walmart |
| Paper yard waste bags: Giant Tiger | |
| Kitchen pail liners | ||
|---|---|---|
| Kitchen pail liners: Locations available | ||
| Box/No Frills | Pharmasave | |
| Canadian Tire | Rona | |
| Community Natural Foods | Safeway | |
| Calgary Farmers' Market | Save on Foods | |
| Calgary Co-op (including certified compostable bags available in rolls near checkout area) | Shoppers Drug Mart | |
| Costco (including certified compostable bag available at meat counter) | Sobeys | |
| Dollarama | Staples | |
| Giant Tiger | Sunnyside Natural Market | |
| Home Depot | Superstore | |
| Italian Supermarket | Walmart | |
| Lee Valley | ||
| London Drugs | ||
| Kitchen pail liners: Brands available | ||
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Extra kitchen compost pails
Put indoor compost pails in other rooms in your home beyond the kitchen – wherever you have a garbage bin, add an extra compost pail to make it easy to compost foods scraps.
You can purchase compost bins at hardware and big box stores like Canadian Tire, London Drugs, Lowes and Home Depot.
You can also reuse any container with a lid like an ice cream bucket.
The City of Calgary does not provide replacement kitchen pails.
2. Flyers and Newspapers
Follow our quick kitchen pail liner guide to make a flyer/newspaper liner at home. For best results, use 3-4 sheets of large newsprint. The newspaper along with the food waste can go directly into the green cart.
Unacceptable liner bags
The following bags are
not accepted in the
Green Cart program:
No plastic bags
Plastic bags interfere with the
composting process and break down into small pieces of plastic that will contaminate the finished compost.
NOTE: Bags labelled as biodegradable and oxo-degradable are also made from plastic and do not belong in the green cart.
