Hidden among the rolling hills and picturesque countryside of Kentucky lies a small farm offering greener solutions to Bowling Green residents. 

Charlie O’Connell, along with his wife Maja, operate Bitsy farm just outside Bowling Green. O’Connell moved to Kentucky roughly five years ago from North Carolina and has been working with WKU ever since.

“At WKU I work for the Kentucky Mesonet and my main role there is working with the soil network,” O’Connell said. “So it’s something I feel connected to.”

Along with working for the Kentucky Mesonet, O’Connell is going to offer a compost service, Compost Bowling Green.

“I thought hard about it and decided to see if it would work,” O’Connell said. “We start service on March 5th and we’ve already had customers who have signed up.”

A customer can subscribe to the service on either a weekly or bi-weekly pickup schedule. 

Once a customer subscribes for the service, they will fill up a four-gallon bucket with waste materials. Then, on a weekly or bi-weekly schedule, Compost Bowling Green will come to exchange the bucket with a new, clean one to start the process all over again.

“Coffee grounds and filters, teabags, eggs, eggshells, meat, seafood, fruits, veggies, dairy, pasta, grains, bread, cookies, cake, nut shells, cooking oil and grease, and more. ​Household wood products, paper towels, ash, cotton balls, corks, pet food, pet waste, hair, fur and feathers, house plants and flowers, and more [can be composted],” according to their website. 

The composted material will be exchanged on Saturdays, depending on the plan the customer choses.

“We’ll start before the sun comes up,” O’Connell said.

Along with the exchange, customers can order farm goods that can be dropped off at that time.

As of right now O’Connell said it is only him providing the service but he is open and willing to hire more employees as the service picks up.

“…It’s going to be me in the beginning but I am committed to hiring as the business grows,” O’Connell said. “I see no need to do this entirely myself and I think there’s an opportunity to have a job that pays well doing this. Of course, in the beginning it would have to be part-time work.”

In addition to the compost pickup service, O’Connell also owns and operates Bitsy Farm which sells beef, pork and various other items.

The family opened Bitsy farm in 2019 in Rockfield, Kentucky with the goal of “reducing waste while creating healthy soils for our customers.”

News Reporter Michael Crimmins can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @michael_crimm