Walsall residents to be given new food waste bins

Food waste collections could prevent up to 10,000 tonnes of waste going to landfill

Food waste collections will be coming to Walsall following approval at a meeting of the cabinet last night.

Households will be issued with one small kitchen caddy and one larger kerbside caddy per household, with the larger kerbside caddy being emptied weekly.

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The service will vary at properties which have communal bins, but the collection will still take place weekly.

It is mandatory for all local authorities to introduce food waste collections by March 31, 2026, under the Environment Act 2021.

Walsall Council cabinet members met on April 16 to approve the new service which is estimated to require additional revenue funding of £1.7m.

Now, portfolio holder for street pride, councillor Kerry Murphy and executive executive director for economy, environment and communities, Dave Brown, will seek to award the various contracts for the supply of caddies, the waste collection vehicles, and the food waste disposal.

According to Walsall Council, food waste collections could remove around 6,000 – 10,000 tonnes of waste from going to landfill, depending on residents’ participation.

A review took place in 2023 analysing what Walsall residents put in their green recycling bins and grey residual bins.

It found that food waste made up 40 per cent of what we put in our grey bins, equating to 28,500 tonnes, and nearly a third of that food waste was still in its original packaging.

Once the service has started, the food waste that is collected from Walsall households will be sent to a treatment facility where it is used to create fertiliser and biogas by a process known as anaerobic digestion.

The cost per tonne for disposal of food waste via anaerobic digestion is less than that for incineration or landfill and can be carried out within the Birmingham region.

The biogas produced can be used to generate green electricity or power vehicles, while the fertiliser is used in agriculture.

Councillor Kerry Murphy said: “From March next year, we’ve got to bring in statutory weekly food collections. It is something we’ve got to do.

“Forty per cent of our waste that goes into our bin is food waste, and the government believes this will help improve the amount going to landfill.”

Councillor Mark Statham, deputy leader and portfolio holder for finance at Walsall Council said: “I wholeheartedly support and welcome the recommendations as set out in the report.

“It’s very good to see the operational plans way in advance of the service introduction. We’re well in front of the eight ball in terms of preparing for it, and that’s to be commended. Failing to plan is planning to fail.”

Councillor Andrian Andrew, deputy leader and portfolio holder for regeneration, said: “I’m sure that we will, with this new endeavour of food waste collection, educate people in the borough about how much food we are actually wasting.

“In the past Walsall has certainly led the way when it came to waste collection and recycling. We’re investing into the waste transfer station in order to future proof our waste collection services here.

“This is something the administration and the council should be proud of when you hear about what’s happening in other parts of the region.”