Dent made in food waste mountain following recycling campaign

A district-wide awareness campaign has been rolled out by the district council to reduce the amount send to landfill.

More than 4,000 tonnes of food waste was Last year, in West Oxfordshire, it is estimated over 4,000 tonnes of food waste was sent to landfill, costing the council taxpayer over £430,000 in landfill charges. Analysis shows that around 30 per cent of the household rubbish collected in West Oxfordshire is food waste.

and has seen a huge increase in its food waste recycling rates after placing stickers on householder waste bins in December.

The stickers were to remind people to use food containers for leftovers and unwanted food rather than putting food in the household rubbish bin.

Food tonnage collected during December and January is up by 130 tonnes compared to the previous year, and during the two-week sticker campaign the council received more than 1,000 requests from households for food waste bins.

Councillor David Harvey, Cabinet Member for Environment said: “It’s marvellous that so many more householders are now on board with food waste recycling. As well as being environmentally friendly, diverting food waste from landfill also saves money. The additional 130 tonnes collected during the first two months amounts to nearly £10,000 in savings.”

All West Oxfordshire households have the opportunity to recycle their food waste as part of weekly collections run by the district council. Any food waste, cooked or raw, can go for recycling in the food waste bin.

Food waste collected is taken to the Agrivert processing plant in Cassington. During the recycling process gases are captured and turned into electricity, while the end product is a nutrient-rich fertiliser known as ‘digestate’.

Householders that do not have a free food waste bin and kitchen caddy, or are unsure of how to recycle their food waste, should call 01993 861000 or visit the Council’s food waste webpages on www.westoxon.gov.uk.