Certified Compost Operations Manager™: Spotlight Allison Lee Forstmann

Allison Lee Forstmann is the founder & CEO of ReCultivateNY, a women-led food waste repurposing business in the state of New York. After 20 years of corporate experience in product development and brand strategy in luxury jewelry, electronics and candy, Allison comes to the table with enormous executive prowess and a creative, analytic mind. At every turn in her career, Allison has been known for her keen ability to identify setbacks and create effective solutions. In 2015, Allison decided to marry her business savvy with her passion for the environment and farming and founded RecultivateNY to create custom, on-site compost processes for farms, corporate campuses, community organizations, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Brownfields and more. ReCultivateNY converts commercial inputs to organic, repurposes on-site materials, and identifies other repurposing opportunities by prioritizing clients’ ESG objectives. ReCultivateNY works with all areas of food waste and recyclables to identify a master plan of processing and reusage, as well as the construction plan to support it. Allison is a CCP (Certified Compost Professional) from the US Composting Council. She is currently enrolled in Cornell’s Executive Women in Leadership certification from the SC Johnson College of Business.

"As the world shifts and evolves in unexpected ways, we have all had to pivot and be flexible with our business practices. I made the decision to pursue professional certification so as to maintain best practices, continue the marketability of ReCultivateNY’s competitive methodology, show female presence in a male-dominated industry, and to continue to take my business and what I have learned into the next phases."