From next month, food scraps can be added to the green lid garden waste bins across Greater Dandenong.
The move will help residents reduce the amount of waste being sent to landfill and will have great benefits for the environment.
The green lid bin will become a food and garden waste bin and collections will start from Monday 5 April.
Residents will be able to add food waste alongside their garden clippings, grass and leaves. The kerbside collection will be taken to a composting facility where the scraps are turned into high grade compost.
Greater Dandenong Mayor Angela Long encouraged residents to take advantage of the new service.
“Figures show that up to half of the waste that goes into the red lid waste bins across Greater Dandenong contain food and garden waste,” Cr Long said.
“With the help of the Greater Dandenong community we can support the reduction of waste going to landfill and contribute to creating high-quality compost for use by Victorian farmers.”
Food waste means any food that is left over from meal preparation and plate scrapings, even including meat, fish, cheese, rice, pasta and cake. Food must not be in a bag or other container and must be added to the bin loose.
No food packaging will be accepted, this includes any packaging labelled compostable, degradable or biodegradable.
For a full list of frequently asked questions visit the Food and Garden Waste Service page.
Hints and Tips for Managing Food Waste
- Store your food and garden waste bin in a shaded area
- Layer your food waste in between garden waste material such as grass clippings and leaves
- You can wrap your food waste in 1-2 sheets of kitchen paper towel or a single sheet of newspaper before placing into your bin
- Store food waste in a sealed container (eg an old ice cream container) in your freezer until the night before collection and then empty directly into the bin
- Rinse out your kitchen caddy and food and garden waste bin regularly
Get a Free Kitchen Caddy
To assist residents with sorting their food waste, residents with a garden waste service can request a free kitchen caddy. Council has a limited number of kitchen caddies available to residents who already have a green lid waste bin.
Register for your caddy. Successful applicants will be notified before they receive their caddy
