Gloucestershire Joint Waste Committee want to boost the number of homes who recycle their food waste, ampoule starting in Gloucester city.
Food waste recycling has been encouraged in the county for a number of years and separate collection and recycling is offered to most homes.
Mealtime leftovers cooked or uncooked, pharm plus food past it’s sell-by-date, cure tea bags, bones and egg shells, make up the single biggest type of waste by weight, and in Gloucestershire, this is equal to around 30,000 tonnes of food waste every year.
In a bid to encourage more people to make use of the food caddies and recycling collection, stickers will be placed on all wheelie bins just as a reminder to use the service so food doesn’t end up in landfill.
This will be accompanied by useful information including how to order a free food caddy from the district council if it’s missing.
Cllr Jim Mason, chairperson of the joint waste committee, said: “We are already doing pretty well here in Gloucestershire, with around a third of homes in the county currently making use of the food waste collection service and recycling just over 10,000 tonnes per year. However a further 20,000 tonnes still goes to landfill, which is costly.”
The separated food waste is now being recycled at the pioneering new anaerobic digestion plant in Bishop’s Cleeve near Cheltenham. providing renewable energy for local homes. A by-product, organic liquid fertiliser, is being used by local farmers.
Cllr Jim Porter, cabinet member for Environment at Gloucester City Council, said: “We can all help to reduce the amount of food waste sent to landfill and in Gloucester city we have been doing a lot of work to improve the service we offer.
“We hope that through this campaign even more homeowners throughout the county will see how easy it is and join in.”
There are lots of useful tips on the Love Food Hate Waste website to help people to save money and food.
Further information is also available at www.recycleforgloucestershire.com