Magazines in compost?

Question

I've made a compost but i was going to put shredded magazines but it has lots of ink...is it still ok?

Answer 1

Only if you know that the ink is non-toxic.  Many companies have switched to soy- or other vegetable inks for safety, but not the glossy magazines.  Best leave them out until you research it.

Answer 2

It's not recommended.

Magazines not only have bad inks but also the shiny material that makes magazine paper so pretty is hard to compost.  I shred my magazines and place them in the kitty box to save on kitty litter.

If the ink is soybased you can compost newspapers.

What I did with my shredded magazines is dig a deep hole for a vegetable patch.  Since most begetables can get by with a foot of soil, I dug my hole 18" and place all my shredded magazines there.  This was more to keep the soil moisture than it was as a compost.  The magazines will eventually decompose over the years and I was able to get rid of a lot of shredded magazines.