Long-Time Hudson Valley Family Business Sold to ‘Mega Company’

A conglomerate that has been gobbling up smaller companies for years has claimed another Hudson Valley victim.

This time, it's a family-run business that is being sold after two decades.

Hudson Valley Family-Run Businesses Disappearing

The latest news of a small business being taken over by a large corporation isn't new. Many of the family-run companies that have been independently operated for generations are now being headed by giant, faceless companies with headquarters nowhere near the Hudson Valley.

Many of these conglomerates continue to keep the family-run business's local name and sometimes even pay a family member to stay on as the face of the company, even though a publicly traded entity now runs it. This can cause many residents to think they're supporting a local business when they are actually just giving their money to another huge corporation.

Another Local Hudson Valley Business Taken Over

Recycle Depot, a family-owned waste and recycling company based on Van Wagner Road in Poughkeepsie, announced this week that it has sold its residential and commercial pickup business to Casella Waste Systems.

Recycle Depot has been a locally owned operation for nearly two decades, run by the Trocino family, who built the company around recycling construction debris and providing local trash service throughout the region.

The company says that it will continue operating its drop-off and processing facility in Poughkeepsie, along with roll-off dumpster rentals and recycled materials like mulch, screened soil and clean fill. But those curbside cans will soon be replaced with new ones decorated with a logo that has slowly taken over the Hudson Valley trash business.

A Familiar Name Expanding in the Hudson Valley

In 2024, Casella Waste Systems purchased Royal Carting and Welsh Sanitation, two of the Hudson Valley’s largest and most established family-owned trash companies. That deal significantly expanded Casella’s footprint across the mid and lower Hudson Valley and western Connecticut.

Royal and Welsh had served the region for decades, building a customer base that included thousands of homes and businesses. The acquisition was expected to generate more than $90 million in annual revenue and marked one of the biggest changes to the region’s waste industry in years.

Casella is a Vermont-based company founded in 1975 that provides waste collection, recycling and resource management services across the Northeast. In addition to the Recycle Depot, the company also acquired Star Waste Systems in Boston this week, that company is valued at over $100 Million. Casella Waste Systems now has a market cap of $6.5 Billion.

What Customers Can Expect

In a message to customers, Casella said its priority is providing a smooth transition and maintaining reliable service. Former customers of Royal Carting say the switch to Casella over two years ago was virtually seamless, with some not even realizing the company had changed hands.

Recycle Depot thanked customers for their loyalty and support over the years, saying it believes customers are in good hands moving forward.