Bright Feeds

April 17, 2023

We are proud to welcome Bright Feeds as a Sustaining Advisory Member of The Northeast Recycling Council

New England-based Bright Feeds, NERC’s newest Supporting Advisory Member, is a “startup solving the food waste crisis by diverting unwanted food from the waste stream and converting it into a high-quality, nutrient-rich animal feed replacement for soy and corn.” Utilizing artificial intelligence (AI) and state-of-the-art drying technology, Bright Feeds accepts all types of food waste from a variety of businesses across the food industry. The company then produces blends for use in a variety of poultry, swine, aquaculture, and cattle feeding operations.


The company’s mission, it states, “is pioneering a new pathway to combating climate change and meeting global food insecurity challenges through innovations in waste management.”


NERC has had a long-standing involvement in solving the critical issue of food waste, as a review of resources on its website confirms. According to a 2021 report from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the climate impact of food waste is “equal to the annual CO2 emissions of 42 coal-fired power plants.” Bright Feeds’ website emphasizes three critical consequences of food waste:

  • Forty percent of the current food supply in the US is wasted, which equates to $161 billion in economic cost;
  • Ninety-five percent of unused food ends up in landfills or incinerators; and
  • Ten percent of greenhouse gases (GHG) comes from methane produced by food in landfills.


In November, 2022, Bright Feeds opened its first food waste processing plant in Berlin CT. The site is licensed to process 450 tons of food waste per day for the next 10 years. “At capacity, our food waste recycling solution is equivalent to removing 33,700 cars off the road every year,” the company states. Bright Feeds also has collection facilities in Massachusetts in order to service New England and parts of New York State.


This year, Bright Feeds was selected to join the third annual Harvard Climate Entrepreneurs Circle, an incubation program for high-potential ventures working to address climate change. According to the Harvard Innovation Labs, “Bright Feeds helps companies meet their sustainability goals and increase profit margins by turning food waste into high-quality nutritious animal feed.”


“Bright Feeds is excited to be a part of NERC and contribute to a shared mission to minimize waste, conserve natural resources, and advance a sustainable economy through collaboration and action. We look forward to working together with other members to solve the food waste crisis in our region” said Laxmi Wordham, Chief Growth Officer at Bright Feeds.


NERC welcomes Bright Feeds to its growing number of Advisory Members seeking to solve the problem of food waste.


For more information about Bright Feeds click here

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Northeast Average Commodity Value Continues to Increase Despite PET’s Sharp Drop in Q2 2026

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New program prepares the next generation of recycling professionals

By Recycling Product News • October 14, 2026
The Recycled Materials Association (ReMA) and the Northeast Recycling Council (NERC) have launched a new pilot initiative to train the next generation of recycling professionals: the Sustainable Materials Careers Program (SMCP). Take a look inside the Sustainable Materials Careers Program Building on the success of NERC's Emerging Professionals Program, which offers new professionals exposure to sustainable materials management (SMM), mentorship, and career guidance, SMCP will focus on college students — with the potential to engage high school students in the future. The program will give students a deeper understanding of career opportunities in SMM and provide hands-on pathways from the classroom to the workplace. Through Career Exploration events and professional development training, students will gain industry exposure, build foundational knowledge, and chart a clear path toward careers in sustainable materials. Career Exploration events will be part of ReMA's Recycling Jobs Day initiative, a national program connecting students with careers in the recycled materials industry. Event activities will include tours of material recovery, recycling, and/or manufacturing facilities, as well as panels highlighting diverse career pathways in the sector. "Many students want to work in sustainability, but they rarely see the diverse career paths available across the materials lifecycle," said Megan Schulz-Fontes, executive director of NERC. "By combining hands-on facility tours with foundational training, this program opens doors across every corner of the industry — including state and municipal governance, equipment and technology manufacturers, recycling infrastructure, and corporate sustainability teams — ensuring the next generation is equipped to lead." Growth in sustainability has increased the number of professionals needed to run the industry The material economy accounts for over 40 percent of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions, according to the EPA. Recycling and composting in the United States prevent the release of roughly 186 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent into the air each year — an impact equal to taking over 39 million gasoline-powered cars off the road annually. Compared to the processing and transportation needed for mining, drilling, harvesting, or other methods of extracting natural resources for manufacturing, the use of recycled materials typically produces fewer greenhouse gas emissions. Global demand for green jobs is growing at 8 percent per year. Yet, LinkedIn's Global Green Skills Report highlights a shortage of qualified talent, with many roles unfilled due to limited training and a lack of mixed skills, as noted by the Institute of Sustainability Studies. SMCP addresses these gaps by increasing awareness of sustainable materials careers and offering free training to participating students. In the 2026-2027 academic year, NERC plans to hold six Career Exploration events and provide enrollment in its Foundations of Sustainable Materials and Recycling course at no cost to students from participating Academic Partners. Current Academic Partners include MIT Department of Materials Science & Engineering, Rowan University Advanced Materials & Manufacturing Institute, University of Massachusetts Lowell, University of New Hampshire Sustainability Institute, University of Southern Maine, and Yale. Read on Recycling Product News.

Northeast Recycling Council and ReMA Launch Sustainable Materials Careers Program

By Waste Advantage • October 9, 2026
In partnership, Northeast Recycling Council (NERC) and Recycled Materials Association (ReMA), announce the launch of a new pilot initiative: the Sustainable Materials Careers Program (SMCP). Building on the success of NERC’s Emerging Professionals Program, which offers new professionals exposure to sustainable materials management (SMM), mentorship, and career guidance, SMCP will focus on college students – with the potential to engage high school students in the future. The program will give students a deeper understanding of career opportunities in SMM and provide hands-on pathways from the classroom to the workplace. Through Career Exploration events and professional development training, students will gain industry exposure, build foundational knowledge, and chart a clear path toward careers in sustainable materials. Career Exploration events will be part of ReMA’s Recycling Jobs Day initiative, a national program connecting students with careers in the recycled materials industry. Event activities will include tours of material recovery, recycling, and/or manufacturing facilities, as well as panels highlighting diverse career pathways in the sector. “Many students want to work in sustainability, but they rarely see the diverse career paths available across the materials lifecycle,” said Megan Schulz-Fontes, Executive Director of NERC. “By combining hands-on facility tours with foundational training, this program opens doors across every corner of the industry—including state and municipal governance, equipment and technology manufacturers, recycling infrastructure, and corporate sustainability teams—ensuring the next generation is equipped to lead.” The material economy accounts for over 40% of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions, according to the EPA. Recycling and composting in the United States prevent the release of roughly 186 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent into the air each year—an impact equal to taking over 39 million gasoline-powered cars off the road annually. Compared to the processing and transportation needed for mining, drilling, harvesting, or other methods of extracting natural resources for manufacturing, the use of recycled materials typically produces fewer greenhouse gas emissions. Global demand for green jobs is growing at 8% per year. Yet, LinkedIn’s Global Green Skills Report highlights a shortage of qualified talent, with many roles unfilled due to limited training and a lack of mixed skills, as noted by the Institute of Sustainability Studies. SMCP addresses these gaps by increasing awareness of sustainable materials careers and offering free training to participating students. In the 2026-2027 academic year, NERC plans to hold six Career Exploration events and provide enrollment in its Foundations of Sustainable Materials and Recycling course at no cost to students from participating Academic Partners. Current Academic Partners include MIT Department of Materials Science & Engineering, Rowan University Advanced Materials & Manufacturing Institute, University of Massachusetts Lowell, University of New Hampshire Sustainability Institute, University of Southern Maine, and Yale Office of Sustainability. NERC invites forward-thinking businesses and organizations to support and expand the Northeast Sustainable Materials Careers Program. By becoming a Program Partner, sponsors directly enable more students to access free training and hands-on industry exposure—building a strong, qualified pipeline for the future circular economy workforce. Read on Waste Advantage.