Amazon.comComposting with worms allows you to turn kitchen scraps, paper waste and cardboard into nutrient-rich soil for your plants. The Worm Factory 360 composting system makes the entire process quick and easy. With a thermo siphon air flow design, the Worm Factory 360 increases the composting speed. Now you can produce compost much faster than traditional composting methods. This version of the Worm Factory 360 comes in black, and it's also available in green and terracotta.Why the Worm Factory 360?Americans throw away 34 million tons of food waste into landfills each year, more than any other type of waste (EPA.gov). While traditional backyard composting has its place, the process can take up to two years and rotating it can become a chore. Worm composting uses worms to do the work of breaking down waste and is more efficient and easier to manage than a traditional backyard compost pile. In addition, its compact design makes it perfect for use in any household. Worm composting makes it easy to recycle kitchen scraps, paper waste and cardboard into nutrient-rich fertilizer for your plants, creating a more sustainable lifestyle by recycling and improving soil quality. The Worm Factory 360 houses thousands of composting worms in a compact space. These worms work 24/7 to efficiently produce highly beneficial, rich compost packed with microbes and water-soluble plant nutrients. This eliminates all the work of traditional composting and yields a much more valuable end product. Worm compost has been proven to have ten times the nutrients of traditional backyard compost. The more nutrients that are available to your plants, the larger they grow and the more bountiful your harvest is. This system allows you to enjoy organic vegetables, fruits, and flowers grown with the help of your kitchen scraps. How the Worm Factory 360 WorksAt A GlanceThe Worm Factory 360 is simple to set up and operate. Managing your Worm Factory 360 takes less than 15 minutes a week. Included with each Worm Factory 360 are a comprehensive instruction guide and DVD that make setup easy and give detailed tips on how to best manage your new Worm Factory 360 year-round. Start with just the bottom tray and bedding material included. Add 1lb of composting worms and start filling the tray with household waste. The worms will process and recycle the waste into fine compost full of nutrients. When the first tray is full, stack another on top. Each tray has a grid bottom, so worms migrate upward as new food is added. As waste is broken down, moisture filters through the system, taking nutrient-rich particles with it. This makes it possible to harvest organic liquid fertilizer right from the spigot. Adding Food/WasteAdding household waste to the Worm Factory 360 is easy; just open the lid and toss the food in. Fruits, vegetables, grains, paper, eggshells, leaves, coffee grounds and more can be added. Three foods to avoid are diary, meat, and citrus items; these can be harmful to the worms and are difficult to compost. Feed your worms about 50 percent food scraps and 50 percent fiber and paper. This creates the optimal environment for worms and finished compost. The goal is to recycle what you usually throw away. Don't worry about feeding your worms every day. Some people feed them a handful a week; some people feed them a handful a day. The general rule of thumb is worms can eat about half their weight in food per day. This means that if you start with 1 pound of worms, they can eat a half pound of food per day. Worms can survive up to two weeks without any additional food. Just feed them a bit extra before going on long vacations. In a healthy environment, composting worms will maintain their population without over or under populating. Odorless Year-Round OperationYour waste production isn't seasonal and your composting efforts shouldn't be either! Composting is no longer limited to the warm months. The Worm Factory