Prepare for your food scraps recycling collection

Everything you need to know to ensure your contribution is a success.

Project Status: When you need to do this

If your household is taking part in our food scraps recycling service, use this guide to prepare your food scraps for collection.

What you need to do

Order your caddy online if you live in an apartment

Limit of 1 caddy per household. Alternatively, you can use any container with a lid, for example, an empty ice cream or plastic container.
Order your caddy
Use certified compostable bags

Only use AS 4736 certified compostable bags in your kitchen caddy or food scraps recycling bin – look for this symbol.

Compostable bags are made of plant material and they break down with your food scraps.

Plastic, degradable and biodegradable bags must not be placed into your food scraps bin. They can contain plastic and heavy metals that are not suitable for composting or microbial treatment.

We’ve supplied all households registered for the service with an initial supply of 200 compostable caddy liner bags. When using the food scraps service regularly, these bags should last the average household about 12 months.

Where to buy more bags
Collect food scraps in your kitchen caddy or other container
- Line your caddy or container with a compostable bag or newspaper. Or if you prefer, use it unlined.
- Place all cooked and raw food scraps inside.
- If you don’t want to keep your food scraps caddy on your kitchen bench, you could:
  - place it under the sink
  - attach it to the back of a cupboard door
  - keep it in your fridge.

- leftovers, plate scrapings and spoiled food
- fruit and vegetable peelings
- dairy products
- eggs and eggshells
- meat, small bones, fish and seafood (soft shells only, example: prawn shells)
- bread, pastries, cakes and biscuits
- rice, grains, cereals, and noodles
- tea bags, loose tea leaves, and coffee grounds
- large bones or hard shells (example: oyster or mussel shells)
- plastic bags and plastic film
- food packaging, takeaway containers, meat trays and foil
- paper towel, serviettes and food soiled baking paper
- general rubbish
- recyclable containers
- textiles
- garden organics
- degradable or biodegradable bags.

Items accepted in the food scraps bin include leftovers and spoiled food; fruit and veg peelings; dairy products; eggs and eggshells; meat, small bones, fish and seafood (no shells); bread, pastries, cakes and biscuits; rice, grains, cereals and noodles; and tea bags, tea leaves and coffee grounds. Items not accepted in the food scraps bin include food-soiled paper towels or napkins; plastic bags and plastic film; food packaging, takeaway containers, meat trays and foil; and general rubbish.

Empty your caddy regularly
- Seal food scraps by tying the liner bag or folding the newspaper.
- Empty at least every 2 to 3 days or more often in warm weather.
Deposit contents into your maroon lid food scraps bin
- Place your bagged, wrapped or loose scraps in your maroon lid bin.
- Be sure to close the bin lid.
- In apartment buildings, your maroon lid bin will be in or near the main bin storage area.

Put your maroon lid bin out for collection

Put your bin out for every collection the night before, even if it’s not full. We’ll collect your maroon lid bin once a week if you live in a house and twice a week if you live in an apartment building.
To find your collection day, look up your property type and suburb in the table below.
Bring in your bin after every collection and rinse out.
If you live in an apartment and someone normally puts your bins out for collection, they will also put out your maroon lid bins.

Property type	Suburb	Collection days
Apartment building	All suburbs	Mondays and Thursdays
House or terrace	Rosebery, Waterloo, Zetland	Mondays
	Alexandria, Beaconsfield, Dawes Point, Forest Lodge, Glebe, Millers Point	Tuesdays
	Erskineville, Redfern, Surry Hills	Wednesdays
	Darlinghurst, Potts Point, Pyrmont, Ultimo, Woolloomooloo	Thursdays
	Camperdown, Centennial Park, Chippendale, Darlington, Newtown, Paddington	Fridays

Caring for your caddy and bin

- Clean your bin after every collection using a hose, pressure sprayer or container filled with hot water and detergent. Plus, keep your bin fresh between collections by sprinkling bicarb soda in the bottom to absorb liquids and odour.
- Eliminate a maggot outbreak in your bin by pouring in boiling water or a mixture of 3 parts water and 1 part vinegar. Consider using a bin insecticide and deodorising product such as Bin Buddy or Binkill.
- Clean your caddy every week by washing it with warm soapy water or in the dishwasher. To keep it smelling fresh, sprinkle some bicarb soda or a few drops of vanilla essence under the liner bag.
- Keep your caddy and bin out of direct sunlight to avoid odour and slow down food decomposition.
- Close your caddy and bin lids to stop flies laying eggs inside.
- Be mindful of hot food, meat and seafood. Let hot food cool down before putting it in your caddy. Keep meat and seafood sealed in a container in your fridge or freezer until the night before collection.
- Empty your caddy regularly – every 2 to 3 days in cooler months and more often when it’s warmer.
- Put your bin out for every collection, even if there’s only a small amount in it.
You can purchase more compostable liner bags from local stores and online sources including those listed below.

Caddy liner bags must be AS 4736 certified compostable. Never use plastic, degradable or biodegradable bags.

If you’re using the kitchen caddy that we supplied, you will need an 8 Litre bag that is at least 42 cm in length and 39 cm wide.

Online
- Compost-A-Pak (These bags are similar to those that we supply)
- BioBag
- Cardia bioproducts
- BioPak
- Biotuff
Stores
- Bunnings
- Coles
- Woolworths
This list is not exhaustive. There may be other suppliers available. We don’t recommend any particular supplier.
Compostable bags are designed to break down with your food scraps in the composting process. They need to be handled thoughtfully or they can tear and split. Here’s how to get the most out of them:
- Fit bags slowly and gently. Bags are meant to fit your caddy tightly so they don't slide down when you add food scraps. This means you can stretch them a bit when you fit them on, but they shouldn’t tear if you take your time.
- Drain excess liquid from food before adding it to your caddy. Liquid makes compostable bags break down faster.
- Change bags every 2 to 3 days. The longer you leave a bag filled with food scraps, the more likely it is to split when you take it out of your caddy.
- Change bags more often in warmer months or when you add hot food. Heat also speeds up the break down process.
- Watch out for weight. Don’t overfill or overload your bags.
- Be mindful of shelf life. Most compostable bags have a best before period of 12 months. After this time bags will be more likely to fail.

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.

The hands of a person scraping food scraps into a caddy bin.

Environmental support & fundingFood scraps recycling service

A half full food recycling caddy on a bench next to a pair of hands cutting up food on a cutting board.

Waste & recycling servicesMake food scraps recycling work in your apartment building

GuidesResources for building managers and championsPublished 11 January 2023

Environmental actionRecycling and waste

Prepare for your food scraps recycling collection

Project Status: When you need to do this

What you need to do

Order your caddy online if you live in an apartment

Use certified compostable bags

Collect food scraps in your kitchen caddy or other container

What belongs in the maroon lid food scraps bin

What doesn’t belong in your maroon lid food scraps bin

Empty your caddy regularly

Deposit contents into your maroon lid food scraps bin

Put your maroon lid bin out for collection

Caring for your caddy and bin

Cleaning and maintenance tips to avoid funky smells and pests

If you need more compostable bags

Online

Stores

Tips for using compostable bags

If you don’t want to use or buy compostable bags

If your bin isn’t collected or is damaged