Food scraps recycling service

About the trial

In July 2019, we began an important trial involving the separate collection and recycling of food scraps from residential properties.

This trial ended in October 2021. Our team is evaluating the trial results to inform a wider service rollout, subject to Council approval. In the meantime, we’re continuing to collect and recycle food scraps from properties that participated in the trial.

Food waste typically makes up one-third of our residents’ red lid rubbish bins. By collecting and recycling food scraps separately, we can reduce waste to landfill. We can then convert the food scraps into compost for use on gardens and farms.

Currently, the service is available to around 1,000 houses and over 265 apartment buildings across the city, comprising more than 20,200 households.

Get involved

Learn how you can recycle your food scraps and help us achieve our zero-waste goal for the city. We’ll provide you with a small kitchen caddy, a supply of compostable caddy liner bags and a food scraps bin – everything you need to make it easy to recycle your food scraps.

What we want to achieve

The food scraps recycling service is helping to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and nourish our environment. The trial was an initiative of our Leave nothing to waste – waste strategy and action plan 2017–2030 and is one of the actions we’re taking to help achieve our zero-waste target by 2030.

The results of our trial will shape future food scraps recycling services across our local area.

What happens to your scraps

Our food scraps are sent to a composting facility that converts the scraps into composts, mulch and soil conditioners. These products are then sold into the agriculture and horticultural markets for use on gardens and farms.

Don’t have the service? Other options for food scraps recycling

If your house or building isn’t participating in the service, you can still recycle your food scraps and play your part in reducing food sent to landfill.

Think about composting food scraps or setting up a worm farm. Check out our tips for composting. Bokashi bins are also a great alternative for those living in apartments.

Alternatively, you could get involved in community-run food scrap recycling initiatives like ShareWaste or Positive Waste.

- If you have a backyard, lay twigs or straw first, a few inches deep, to help drain and aerate the pile.
- Add moist and dry ingredients alternately. Moist ingredients include food scraps, tea bags and seaweed. Dry materials would be straw and leaves.
- Add manure to activate the compost pile and help speed the process along.
- Keep it moist by watering occasionally.
- Cover with anything you have such as plastic sheeting or carpet scraps. This helps retain moisture and heat which are essential for compost.
- Turn the compost every few weeks.
- Alternatively, you can buy a composter. Consider a rotating compost tumbler, which makes it easy to mix the compost regularly.
- Worm farms are great if you have a smaller backyard, terrace or balcony.
- Buy a worm farm and place it in a semi-shaded spot. Make sure your worm farm has shade during summer.
- Worms can eat all your fruit and veggie scraps except for citrus, onion and chilli.
- The worm tea and castings produced by the worm farm are great fertilisers for your plants.
- Learn more about setting up and looking after a worm farm.
- Bokashi bins can be kept inside, ideally in your kitchen ready to collect your food scraps. Or keep them outside on a balcony or by the back door.
- The bins use an enzyme spray to break down the food scraps into liquid and solid fertilisers. This fertiliser is great for your plants.
- Bokashi bins can accept all kinds of food scraps including small amounts of meat and dairy.
- Learn more about setting up and looking after a bokashi bin.
- Your community project could be a compost bin in a community garden, a shared worm farm in an apartment block or school, or perhaps a compost system used by a group of local businesses.
- Whatever composting system you choose, our guidelines will help make your project a success.

Avoiding food waste in the first place

You can avoid or reduce food waste by planning your meals, shopping wisely, being creative with leftovers, and storing food correctly.

Love Food Hate Waste and Cornersmith have partnered to create a free online series of video tutorials. Learn ways to reduce food waste in your kitchen, including storage tips, dinner ideas, low-waste snack recipes and other helpful waste hacks.

Kitchen Hand is an online platform that helps you plan and manage food, save money and reduce food waste. You'll find recipes, leftover hacks, seasonal produce guides and a food tracker to help you use up what you have.

This project was supported by the Environmental Trust as part of the NSW EPA’s Waste Less, Recycle More initiative funded from the waste levy.