JUN 09

My first reaction when I got the press release for the NatureMill indoor composting machine was to laugh. Why would anyone need a $300 machine in order to do composting? All you need is a corner of your yard where you can set a compost pile and let the worms and bugs and micro-organisms do what they do. Composting works just fine without a machine to run the process. Isn't this just another case of someone trying to sell an overpriced and unnecessary gadget with a little bit of “greenwash”?

Then, as I thought about it further, I realized that not everyone has a yard where they can have a compost pile. Apartment and condominium dwellers may not have a space where they could even have a compost pile, or, if they do have a yard, association restrictions and proximity to neighbours would prevent them from having an exposed compost pile. Offices may also have sufficient organic waste that composting would be a reasonable thing to do, but again, don't have an available space where they could put the materials and allow natural composting to take place. Despite these restrictions, someone in any of these circumstances might nevertheless want to compost their organic waste. And no one wants to have a compost pile sitting around in their apartment or office. So, perhaps there is a place for this machine, for some people's needs. As a machine, it only needs about $0.50 worth of electricity per month to operate, according to the manufacturer. And it is small enough that it can be installed in an under-cabinet configuration.

It would still only make sense for users who had someplace to use the compost they produced. There's not much point in composting the waste unless you can use it for a garden or some other useful end. And if it can help support more urban gardening, then maybe it's a good thing.

Comments (14)

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written by Craig, June 09, 2008

Yep, I got one of these as I live in an apartment with no place to compost and was planning on putting the product on the gardens around my complex. The whole “no smell” thing didn’t work out so well and within a week it was sent outside, where I had no end of issues keeping it from jamming up. The idea is great, I just doesn’t seem to work that well.

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written by Christopher Reeve, June 09, 2008

A wormary is much cheaper. However overfeeding or feeding the wrong things will also lead to bad smells. If you are careful enough they are great. There are always plenty of people who are grateful for free compost. In the UK we have something called freecycle where you can advertise free stuff like compost.

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not good for allergic persons
written by max, June 09, 2008

nice concept but not for all persons..

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written by Paul, June 11, 2008

This is really just not impressive. Worm composting can do the job without using any electricity and without requiring the production of yet another big chunk of plastic...

In our quest for sustainability, simpler is often better..

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written by mes, June 11, 2008

You can not use this in your house or apartment. It stinks! We have one that we keep just outside our kitchen door and you have to close the door behind you before you open it or it stinks up the entire house. We have had it for more than 2 months and we really have not gotten one batch of compost with out problems. The machine jams up constantly and the compost never drops to the bottom so we have to scoop it out. It is really nasty. We keep trying hoping that it will work.

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written by B, June 13, 2008

We tried one of these at work and they are: a) very low capacity, probably too small for even two people living together, b) very smelly, and c) largely ineffective and expensive. We sent ours back.

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Any more reviews?
written by Drew, July 16, 2008

Hi, I live in Hong Kong (no back yard!) and group of us were going to buy these. Any body else had any luck with this thing?

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written by Ron Rivera, August 02, 2008

I realized that not everyone has a yard where they can have a compost pile. Apartment and condominium dwellers may not have a space where they could even have a compost pile, or, if they do have a yard, association restrictions and proximity to neighbours would prevent them from having an exposed compost pile.

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Worms work without smell
written by Kyla, August 14, 2008

If you follow the directions for keeping worms, it does not stink, uses no energy, and gives connection to the earth.

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@ Kyla
written by Drew, September 21, 2008

I imported a worm farm from the UK "Can-o-worms". It was great and you are right about the smell, done properly there isn't any. My problem was with the huge range of critters being attracted to the different layers and in the end was not practical in an apartment. I would certainly go for it if I had a home with an outdoor area - my worms kicked butt!

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written by Rojelio, December 28, 2008

I bought one of these a few months ago. Not impressed. You certainly don't want it in your kitchen, or anywhere else in you house for that matter because it stinks. The turning blades are weak and are always getting jammed, thus any scraps that you put in must be scrupulously cut to a small size to prevent this. The average citydweller would be better off trying to find a community compost service or a better product.

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written by ed hardy clothes, September 24, 2009

We tried one of these at work and they are: a) very low capacity, probably too small for even two people living together, b) very smelly, and c) largely ineffective and expensive. We sent ours back.

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written by Home Composter Sara, September 25, 2009

I can't believe there isn't even one good review about this product on this site. Other sites aren't quite so bad. I've been thinking about getting one, but have opted to go with the Worm Factory instead. I will wait to see how the reviews are for the newly released Naturemill Pro XE, which is supposed to have taken customer recommendations into account and be much improved. We'll see.

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beneficial to both
written by hampers, October 30, 2009

It is really very important to recycle especially if the waste is non-biodegradable. If we talk about composting, this is also another way of recycling which is very beneficial both to the environment and humans as well.

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