Providing food waste collection services to blocks of flats is not just a matter of giving out bins. It needs support from residents and well as the managers and agents responsible for maintaining the blocks. Councils have experienced problems in blocks of flats where managing agents have refused to allow food waste collection from their buildings and other blocks where the cleanliness of the bin stores have had a negative impact on residents’ willingness to partake in the services. Government should further consider the appropriateness and availability of community treatment facilities such as wormeries or micro-AD and develop non-statutory guidance and funding to aid implementation in areas with many blocks of flats and communal properties. Local determination when it comes to service design is essential if government is going to achieve the uptake of food waste recycling in flats.
Defra must set out their plans for supporting new investment in food waste infrastructure. Our analysis indicates significant regional variations in the availability of food waste processing plants. This has a knock-on effect on costs and gate fees.
Steps should be taken to prevent food waste in the first place. Councils are already doing excellent work to implement policies that reduce food waste at the source. Bristol City Council are an example of where policies can make a dramatic difference in reducing food waste. By implementing a good food and catering procurement policy to require council-linked food services to produce an annually reviewed plan for reducing food waste and minimising its impact. Messaging initiatives that educate and encourage residents to use food waste bins. Bio-fuel generation schemes can also use food waste to produce biogas and biofertilizer. Anaerobic digestion systems can be used to produce electricity or upgrade it to biomethane to fuel ‘bio-buses’.
Councils work with businesses to adopt circular waste management practices, for example, the North Yorkshire Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP)’s Circular Yorkshire food waste reduction project.
Councils also work with communities to promote changes in farming practices and eating habits to reduce food waste. Waste reduction apps such as Too Good to Go can be used to dramatically reduce business food waste, while providing affordable food to residents.
Councils also provide support for people to plan health meals and reduce food waste in the process.