Miami, FL Trash & Recycling: Mandatory Organics Recycling (2026)
Key Facts
- Minimum removal frequency
- 3 times per week
- First-offense fine
- $262.50
- Repeat-offense fine
- $525.00
- Who it covers
- food service properties
- Produce-market franchisees
- must offer composting program
Summary
Miami food service properties whose waste stream is mostly raw or processed organic matter must have it hauled away at least three times a week, with fines starting at $262.50 for missing the schedule.
All food service properties producing raw or processed organic waste matter as a major portion of their waste stream shall provide for the removal of such material a minimum of three times per week.
(c)The garbage or trash container site for commercial properties shall:(1)Be situated in an easily accessible location for collectors;(2)Be a platform constructed of concrete above ground level in the case of a commercial property, and shall be large enough to accommodate an appropriately sized dumpster for the facility being serviced;(3)Be constructed in such a manner as to discourage or eliminate the possibility of rodents breeding under the platform; and(4)Be screened from any street, alley, sidewalk or adjacent property. Such screening shall be maintained in perpetuity by the property owner. Screening shall be constructed of chain link fencing with slats (cyclone fencing) or wood picket fencing. Sunken containers are hereby declared to be hazardous to the health, welfare and safety of the residents of and visitors to the city and to the city's waste collection personnel. Accordingly, such containers shall immediately be replaced with approved containers and the holes where they were previously sunk shall be filled with clean, solid fill.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 23 | Ordinance 11000 (Previous Zoning Code): Supplement 22 | Miami 21 (Zoning Code): ?).
Full Breakdown
Under City Code § 22-2(b), any food service property where raw or processed organic waste (food scraps, kitchen trim, spoiled product) makes up a major share of the waste stream must arrange removal of that material a minimum of three times per week, separate from the twice-weekly residential garbage schedule set in § 22-2(a). The solid waste director enforces the frequency requirement, and the city's own penalty schedule (§ 22-47) lists a specific fine for noncompliance keyed to this exact subsection. Separately, § 22-51(c) requires franchisees servicing produce-market vendors to run an organic waste recycling/composting program diverting material toward the city's waste-to-energy facility, with a citywide diversion floor set annually by the director, but that composting mandate is narrower, reaching only produce-market accounts rather than all food service.
Violations & Fines
Failure to remove organic waste from a food service establishment: $262.50 for a first offense, $525.00 for a second offense and each one after that (§ 22-2(b)).
Frequently Asked Questions
Does this apply to my household kitchen scraps?
Is Miami's organics rule a separation mandate?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Miami
Florida rules heatmap·Compare Miami to another location·View the Florida trash & recycling overview
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