Increasing Food Waste Recycling With metroSTOR FX Bin Housings
Separate food waste collection from households and businesses is expected to be made mandatory in England by 2023 as part of the Government commitment under its Resources and Waste Management Strategy.
Around 50% of local councils in the UK already collect food waste separately or as part of their green waste collection, but some 2.3Mt of household-produced food waste goes to landfill every year. The harmful methane gas emitted as food waste breaks down can be used to generate energy in an anaerobic digester plant and the current volumes going to landfill could potentially generate up to 2.7TWh of green energy.
Collecting food waste from individual households is comparatively straightforward, but providing communal facilities for flatted accommodation remains a challenge. The obstacles mainly revolve around persuading lower-income residents who are facing numerous difficulties in their daily lives to take the trouble to separate the food waste in the first place before placing it into a suitable container without any contaminants such as packaging or household refuse.
Food waste can quickly become smelly and attract flies if anaerobic conditions develop when within a sealed container and particularly in warm weather, and this in itself can become an obstacle to use. Placing the bin within a metroSTOR FX housing with the option of hands-free operation can help increase participation, as well as providing aperture restrictions to prevent household refuse being placed in the food waste bin.
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