A survey on what goes into a typical black refuse bin on the Island has found nearly 22% is food waste, which is a drop of 3% compared to 2020.
Natasha Dix, the Council’s waste and environment manager, said the figure was still ‘really concerning’ at a scrutiny meeting last week, and hoped it could be something Islanders could stop.
A recent study, she said, found the majority of food waste in the black bin is ‘avoidable’ with 2 issues in particular highlighted. 1 area was out-of-date meat and vegetables. Rather than separate the food from the packaging, everything is being put in the black bin.
The other was bread ends with the 2 crusts of bread, at the start and end of the loaf, were being placed into the general black rubbish bin, still in the bread bag.
Ms Dix said the bread bag is recyclable and the bread could go into the green food waste bin. She said thought needs to go into tackling this and consideration from residents as to whether they are going to eat the food they buy in a week or if they even need to buy it.
Food waste is separated in the collection lorries and goes through different waste disposal than general rubbish.
Through a process called anaerobic digestion, the food waste is used to create electricity and compost and 10 tonnes of food waste can generate enough power to provide electricity for 1 home for a year.
The Council says it is better to avoid throwing out food that can be eaten as it saves residents money and helps reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Any leftover food – tea bags, coffee grounds, eggshells, fruit and vegetables, cooked and uncooked foods as well as small meat bones can all be put in the food caddy.
The Council says it is better to avoid throwing out food that can be eaten as it saves residents money and helps reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
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well, thank you council for that condescending, nanny state bit of parenting, that would normally be told to a three year old. This is on par with that annoying “please take your items” message at the self service checkout in the shops. As if I am going to select the items, scan them, pay for them and then walk off, leaving them on the scales.
Why do councillors and others that enter any political arena, somehow have a personality change to being a dictatorial, jobsworth know it all, that looks down at everyone else and talks to them like a child, as soon as they take up the job.
We put everything in the black bin, nothing goes in the green bin, and anything left over that dosnt fit in the tiny black bin gets burnt in an old oil drum in the garden, job done!
Tea bags contain plastic
Not if you shop around, they don’t!
Yorkshire Tea contains no plastic and it is the best tea.
No it’s not, it’s bitter and too strong.
Pot, kettle, black
Take the tea bag out sooner then
I once had a plastic bag that contained tea.
Just laziness not splitting out recycling, food waste and general rubbish, doesn’t take a genius!
And how come the black bags in the photo haven’t been adorned with little stickers saying they can’t be collected? Better sort that one Ms Dix.
Better still – eat your crusts! Makes your hair curly.
Would love to see how this “survey” was actually conducted (sample size, etc.). This article makes it sound like anaerobic digestion is good for the environment when it is actually damaging. The biogas produced is mainly methane and it is burned to generate power. Thankfully, better solutions for processing food waste will soon be implemented, such as using insects and other invertebrates to naturally process waste.
May help use not putting the food waste in the black bins if they provided food waste
Bags well as sorry I’m not going out of my way to pay for food bags that cost £1.60 upwards for only 20 bags not in this cost of living problem
Given the huge increase in recycling and the reduction in waste generated, can this person please explain why we haven’t seen a requisite reduction in the amount of tax we are paying for waste disposal? you now deliver effectively a third of the service you used to deliver, with the taxpayer performing the vast majority of waste sorting, cleaning etc so please explain why you are still taking the same amount of money to do it (increase in hectoring bureaucrat costs accepted)
Don’t forget all the volunteers that are now litter picking our roads and beaches etc etc that save the council a few bob every year because they can’t afford to do it as often to keep the island tidy.
I expect a lot of people have a greater degree of introspection about bins than they do about their own bodies.
So what is the other 78% in a black bag that can’t be recycled?
Sex toys, motorbike engines, microwaves, machine guns, petrified wood, and hair dryers in most cases.
Whaaaat!! Eeeawwe that’s disgusting! I wouldn’t want to pay anyone to sort used sec toys out!
All in the black bins for me! Can’t be arsed with sorting that out, that’s what you pay your staff to do up the plant..
I have seen my food waste being thrown into the same part of the waste vehicle as the rest of my rubbish so although I do separate things, I do wonder why I bother. Maybe the council need to look at the people that are employed in this job as this article says the food waste is separated but I have seen evidence that proves this is not so.
I agree and they do put it in the same place I’ve seen them do it too. See and do?
Bob Sealy said today that the Isle of Wight has the best system when it comes to refuge etc.. why does he hold his head down in his arm, not make contact with the cameras? He’s soooo weird
He’s a regular on that program! Don’t think he’s got much to do otherwise.
Easiest way to get rid of food waste, take it to the coast and feed the
Seagulls, they will eat the lot.
Better for the climate to.
Some people are so anal about recycling. Life’s too short! It’s not the end of the world if you pop something a bit ‘out of whack’ in the wrong bin come on. Like someone else said, we pay our taxes and someone else at the plant to sort it out don’t we!?
I once found a condom in a freshly opened bag of compost. Either it went in the wrong recycling bin or the badgers are playing safe.
I dont pay the Council £2,000.00+ a year to do my own
recycling.
I know persons at the Tip and it all goes on 1 pile and I am not
Joking.