Brimbank residents’ usage of appropriate recycling bins for their food scraps has made a significant difference – with thousands of tonnes of high-quality compost produced as a result for Victorian farms.
Locals who have been using their food organics and garden organics (FOGO) bins as intended are contributing to a healthier environment, according to the Brimbank council.
Mayor Thuy Dang said there are numerous benefits one could achieve by using a FOGO bin at home to dispose of food waste, which includes fruit and vegetables, meat, breads and dairy scraps.
“Using a FOGO bin is one easy way we can all help protect the environment,” she said.
“Council’s food and garden organics bins are collected fortnightly and taken to a recycling facility to be turned into nutrient rich compost for use in parks, gardens and farms.
“If every Brimbank household used our FOGO service, we could drastically reduce the greenhouse gas emissions we generate. This saving would be the equivalent of taking 17,582 cars off the road each year.”
Food scraps make up about 50 per cent of the contents in the garbage bin from the average Brimbank home.
According to the council, all this food waste currently ends up in landfill creating harmful greenhouse gases with disastrous consequences for the environment.