The Association of Manufacturers of Domestic Appliances’ pre-Christmas food waste survey, revealed that our enthusiasm for recycling wilts when it comes to food scraps. While an impressive 87% of we Brits say we put out paper and card for recycling, 84% regularly recycling plastic, 77% recycling glass and 75% recycling metal, only 41% of us bother recycling our food waste, meaning that our less frequently collected ‘main’ waste bin may attract more than a parking ticket when the weather gets hot!

Depending where we live our zeal to store food left overs for separate council collection falls even further, to 32% amongst those living in inner city areas and 24% for those  in purpose built flats.

For those turning their nose up at separate collection schemes, aside from those saying the service is not provided by their local authorities, top reasons cited included: “It smells” - (19%), “It attracts unwanted pests” - (19%), and “its unhygienic” - (14%).

Food waste that’s not recycled either goes to landfill or is incinerated; emitting greenhouse gases and wasting valuable biogas, precious soil nutrients and vital resources such as phosphorus. Clearly something needs to be done to change our behaviour…

WRAP  reports that only 10% of food waste is being recovered, yet nearly a third (32%) of those surveyed,  who do not use separate collection when it is offered by their local council, said that an easier/ cleaner option (like an in-sink  food waste disposer) would encourage them to do so. Food waste disposers grind practically any food waste to minute particles that flow easily through the sewer system to waste water treatment where biogas for heat and power is recovered, along with valuable fertilisers.

I do hope that those of you involved in advising householders and businesses that are about to refurbish their kitchens, do your best to persuade them to include a food waste disposer in their plans. As well as helping increase our biogas yields, it would keep leftovers out of landfill and prevent food waste from contaminating our streets and other valuable dry recyclables that have been taken to the dump, but which – if clean – might prove useful for another family.

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Yours,

Jan Hobbs