Apple pomace is the moist pulp, peel, seeds, and occasional stem material left after pressing cider. It decomposes readily, but its moisture and sugars can create odors, flies, or anaerobic mats when dumped in a thick pile. The best reuse choice depends on cleanliness, volume, and whether the material has begun to ferment.
Start with Clean Pressing Practices
Pomace from sound, washed fruit and sanitized equipment is different from waste containing rotten apples, soil, animal contamination, cleaning chemicals, or spoiled juice. Keep questionable material out of human food and animal feed.
Compost It with Dry Carbon
Composting is the most broadly useful option. Mix fresh pomace with dry, carbon-rich materials such as shredded leaves, straw, or untreated wood shavings. Break up dense clumps, maintain airflow, and cover exposed fruit material inside the pile to reduce insects and wildlife attraction.
Browse composting supplies for tools and materials that can support a managed compost system.
Avoid a Thick Surface Layer
Do not spread a deep blanket of fresh pomace against tree trunks or over garden soil. It can mat, ferment, repel water, and attract pests. Compost it first, or incorporate only modest amounts into an active, balanced compost system.
Animal Feed Requires Specific Guidance
Do not assume cider pomace is appropriate for livestock, poultry, pets, or wildlife. Seeds, rapid fermentation, moisture, mold risk, species differences, ration balance, and residues all matter. Consult a veterinarian or qualified livestock nutrition professional before feeding it, and never feed moldy or spoiled pomace.
Do Not Feed Wildlife
Placing pomace outdoors for birds or mammals can habituate wildlife, attract rodents, and concentrate disease or pest activity. Use a managed compost system instead.
Cosmetic and Household Uses Need Validation
Food by-products are not automatically safe skin-care ingredients, cleaners, or shelf-stable craft materials. Avoid homemade cosmetic claims and any preparation that lacks a validated preservation process.
Limited Kitchen Reuse
If pomace comes from sound, washed apples processed with sanitized equipment, it can sometimes be used immediately in a cooked recipe designed for fresh pomace. Remove stems and unsuitable debris, refrigerate promptly, and follow a reliable recipe. Do not use pomace from spoiled fruit or leave it at room temperature for later food use.
Municipal Green-Waste or Organics Collection
When a compost pile cannot absorb the volume, check local organics or green-waste rules. Some programs accept fruit-processing residues; others restrict wet commercial loads. Confirm before delivery.
Clean Up the Pressing Area
Remove pomace promptly, wash food-contact equipment, and prevent residue from entering storm drains. A documented plan for containers, compost carbon, and cleanup makes large pressing days easier.
Pomace Decision Guide
- Clean, fresh, small quantity: active compost or an immediate reliable cooked recipe.
- Clean, fresh, large quantity: balanced compost system or approved organics collection.
- For animal feed: only with species-specific professional guidance.
- Moldy, chemically contaminated, or questionable: dispose of it according to local rules; do not feed or cook with it.
Return to the apple-cider guide or browse bare-root apple trees.
4 comments
Rebecca, I suppose you could but it would not have as much flavor since all of the juice is squeezed out. You would have to add water to it as well to rehydrate. You can always add it to your compost bin, worm bin or feed it to the hungry wildlife.
Could you make Applesauce with the leftovers? I just hate wasting food.
This is a great article! I will try making ciderkin this year. Try as I might, though, I can’t get my compost piles hot enough to risk adding pomace to them, at least not this year. I wonder whether putting the pomace in my dehydrator would result in anything edible. And, in reply to Richard Cocks, I like your idea, too. How long does the pomace last in the refrigerator? Have you tried freezing it? Cheers!
Hi. I’m new to cider-making and have a press like yours in the picture. I don’t like wasting food so cut the cores out of the apples before pressing, so everything left over was edible. The pomace went in the fridge and I’m enjoying it for breakfast, adding milk as I normally would to my oats.