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.

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