Missoula County Fair seeks 90% waste-diversion goal with vendor rules, volunteer push

Missoula County Fair officials and Home Resource told a community forum they plan to raise the fair’s waste-diversion rate to 90% this year by tightening vendor requirements, expanding on-site sorting and volunteer shifts, and strengthening composting partnerships.

Tenzin, a Missoula County Fairgrounds staff member who has led the fair’s sustainability work, said the fair diverted 82% of waste last year — up from 74% in 2023 — and that “our plan for this year is to increase that to 90%.” Home Resource staff said the fair’s 82% diversion equated to about 54,000 pounds of material kept out of landfill during the five-day event and noted the organization diverts more than 2 million pounds a year at events.

The plan centers on four measures organizers said they use each year: planning, training, vendor education and on-site sorting. To reduce contamination and improve sorting accuracy, fair staff said they will give each food vendor dedicated pre-sorting bins so vendors do not rely solely on public-facing stations; simplify public-facing signage into three clear streams (trash, food waste/compost and cans); and increase volunteer sorting capacity.

Home Resou…