Great Improvement In Recycling Rates Across Down District

THE  recent introduction of a food waste recycling service has been enthusiastically received by residents in Down District, with a massive additional three tonnes of food waste being lifted every day in the brown bins.

[caption id="attachment_46904" align="alignleft" width="390"] Down District Council Director of Environmental Services Canice O’Rourke and Council Chairman Cllr Maria McCarthy say don’t throw away wastebread and chicken that isn’t eaten but put it in the brown bin.[/caption]

Food waste represents nearly a third of all household waste, so introducing a recycling service for food was essential to achieving a good recycling rate. It is estimated that every household throws away on average £720 of food waste each year, that’s a lot of food to recycle.

All food waste, cooked and uncooked can be put into the caddies, even bones – the only items you can’t recycle are liquids and oils. So whether it’s out of date food from your fridge or cupboards, leftovers from your food preparation or just what you haven’t eaten on your plate, it can all be recycled in your caddy and it’s so easy to do.

By taking part in this exciting new scheme, you can help Down District Council keep waste out of landfill and help to reduce costs of waste services. As costs are reduced we hope to extend the service to all areas.

Many residents have commented that with the introduction of food waste, and with blue bins accepting so many different items (last year the blue bin list of recyclables increased to accept juice cartons and tinfoil), and as many people take their glass to bottle banks, there is very little left to go into the black bin. Really all that is left to put into your black bin in household brown bin areas is plastic packaging.

The new scheme is simple and easy to use. The little ‘kitchen caddy’ can sit on your kitchen worktop or beside your bin, simply collect all your food leftovers, peelings, kitchen roll and scraps then simply empty the contents into your large brown outdoor bin. It will be collected as usual every fortnight.

You can line your kitchen ‘caddy’ with newspaper, do not put food waste into any bags – it simply goes into the bin loose.

]]>