FOGO: a new way to recycle

Published Date
11/11/2020
News Topic
Sustainability & Environment
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NOTE: This news article was accurate at the time it was posted. Visit FOGO to see the latest information.


It’s National Recycling week this week, which is a great opportunity to take a fresh look at recycling. It’s great to put items in the recycle bin, but what’s even better is seeing if there is life for an item beyond the bin.

This might mean placing items you would normally chuck in the red bin on freecycle sites or selling them online instead. It could mean buying fewer items or ones that are made from recycled materials. It may also mean choosing to repair something instead of ditching it.

When it comes to food waste, one of the best ways to give your scraps and leftovers a second life is FOGO. This stands for Food Organics Garden Organics and it is a new waste collection service that lets you pop your food and garden waste in the same green lid bin. The contents of this bin can then be turned into compost which can be used on NSW farms and even in the gardens and parks in our area.

Imagine that – your discarded food can be used to improve the soil of food you’re about to buy or grow in your own backyard or balcony!

The new FOGO service will start in March 2021. In January you’ll receive new red and yellow lid bins as well as a new green lid bin, kitchen caddy and compostable liners.

The caddy is small enough to leave on your bench, in a cupboard or some other convenient location so that it is close at hand when you need it. You can throw your vegetable peelings in it while preparing food and scrape leftovers and used paper napkins into after a meal. If you use compostable kitty litter, you can throw that into the caddy too.

As well as the convenient caddy, residents will also receive a supply of compostable liners. These will help keep the caddy clean and make it easy to take scraps out to the bin.

When most people hear “recycling” they think of the yellow lid bin. Now, with the green lid bin, there is another way to recycle! We are so excited to be the first inner-metro council in Sydney to offer our community a new way to recycle.

So, this Recycling Week, start to think of how FOGO will give your food waste a future beyond the bin and start preparing for it.

Further FOGO information

Want to learn more about the new FOGO bin coming in March 2021? Head to our FOGO page to read some frequently asked questions, with more details being added over the coming months.

If you would like to help promote FOGO in your community, fill in our online form to sign up as a Friends of FOGO volunteer.

Still got questions? Send them to fogo@randwick.nsw.gov.au

More ways to reduce food waste

Find more ideas at Planet Ark's site.

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Last Updated: 20 June 2023
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