In the quiet fields of Mono, Wastenot Farms is proving that waste is never really waste at all. Founded in 2013 by Jocelyn Molyneux, the farm collects food waste from local restaurants, breweries, and agricultural operations—including Mrs. Mitchell’s Restaurant, GoodLot Brewery, and Mochaberry Coffee—and feeds it to a thriving population of three million red wiggler worms. The result is Jocelyn’s Soil Booster, a line of natural soil and bio-fertilizer products that put nutrients back into the land.
With a background in waste management, Jocelyn discovered early in her career that much of what was labeled “compost” was actually being sent to landfill. Wastenot Farms was her solution: a regenerative farm that closes the loop locally. It takes only one month for the worms to transform ten pounds of organic waste into one pound of nutrient-rich worm castings—concentrated soil that supports healthy, sustainable growing.
What makes Wastenot unique is both its process and its products. By harvesting and screening worm manure, they create a peat-free living potting soil, replacing traditional peat with partially degraded wood particles and microbial life. Their soils don’t just feed plants—they foster a living ecosystem where microbes deliver the right nutrients at the right time.
Operating from a straw bale barn heated with passive solar energy, the farm employs 3.5 staff and supplies products through Orangeville Flowers, Harmony Whole Foods, Amazon, and their own website. And with Dufferin’s location just an hour from Toronto, Wastenot has the best of both worlds—rural roots with direct access to the GTA’s environmentally conscious consumers. “The regenerative movement is happening here,” Jocelyn explains. “From a distribution perspective, being close to the city while remaining rooted in a rural community is incredibly valuable.”
As Jocelyn puts it, “In nature there is no such thing as waste—it’s just resources in the wrong place at the wrong time.” Wastenot Farms is showing how those resources can rightly enrich both soil and community.