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DCL
The gang at Waste.nl describe organic waste as "a major component of municipal solid waste. Most originates from household waste but commercial, institutional and industrial waste can also contain significant proportions of organic waste e.g. market waste." Over at the Ecology Dictionary, they put it this way: "Carbon-containing materials that are discarded into the environment and particularly into bodies of water," before adding that the term is "often used as a euphemism for domestic sewage."
Either way, organic waste is biodegradable and "can be processed in the presence of oxygen by composting or in the absence of oxygen using anaerobic digestion. Both methods produce a soil conditioner, which when prepared correctly can also be used as a valuable source of nutrients in urban agriculture. Anaerobic digestion also produces methane gas an important source of bio-energy."
New York's Department of Environmental Conservation reminds us that "composting of organic materials from the solid waste stream not only provides a valuable benefit to nutrient deficient soils, but also reduces the amount of waste that ends up in landfills or incinerators. Other benefits of composting organic matter include the increase in beneficial soil organisms such as worms and centipedes, suppression of certain plant diseases, the reduced need for fertilizers and pesticides, prevention of soil erosion and nutrient run-off, and assistance in land reclamation projects."
