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Liverpool moves forward on food waste collection
Councillor Laura Robertson-Collins, Liverpool City Council's Cabinet Member for Communities, Neighbourhoods and Streetscene said:- "We've made clear in our Recycling and Waste Strategy that we are committed to improving recycling rates across the City. A huge amount of the rubbish that goes in our purple bins will soon be able to be recycled kerbside, making it even easier for residents to have a positive impact on the environment and find a new lease of life for our waste. Our teams are working hard behind the scenes to ensure that the move to food waste collections in the near future is as smooth and efficient as possible." In preparation for the mandatory collection of food waste in April 2026, Liverpool City Council is planning to introduce a new fleet of eco friendly vehicles into the City. Working in partnership with other local authorities in the City region and the Merseyside Recycling and Waste Authority, the Council has sourced 20 vehicles that run on hydrogenated vegetable oil, meaning they produce 98% less CO2 than their diesel counterparts. These vehicles will provide the additional capacity needed to run the new, free weekly food collection across all 200,000+ households in the City. The Council has secured over £9m in funding from the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (DEFRA) to implement food waste collection changes, £4.47m of which will be used to purchase the new vehicles. Of the 135,000 tonnes of waste sent for incineration from Liverpool each year, approximately one third is considered food waste. With each tonne of purple bin waste costing £65 more than a tonne of blue waste, removing food waste could save a significant amount of money. By introducing a new food waste collection, the Council will join the national push to increase the number of materials that can be recycled and reduce carbon emissions across the country. Each household will be provided with 2 new food waste bins, or caddies; a smaller 1 for inside the property and a larger one to sit alongside the current:- purple, blue, and green bins. Cabinet will also be asked to approve the procurement of these caddies at next week's meeting. To ensure a long life span, all potential caddies were tested for robustness and durability before a winning bid was selected to be presented to members. Once the changes are in effect, this waste will be taken away to be broken down via anaerobic digestion. This process uses microorganisms to break down the food, releasing methane as they do. This gas is then collected and used to generate electricity, heat, or transport fuels. It means that the upcoming changes could greatly reduce the City's carbon emissions while also putting these gases to good use. In the meantime, food waste can be composted at home to create nutrient rich fertiliser for the garden. Currently, there is no infrastructure in place within the City Region to process food waste, meaning it will need to be sent to a suitable facility elsewhere. To mitigate this, and to further improve the City's CO2 emissions, Cabinet will also be asked to explore opportunities to open a new waste treatment system nearby. Research has found that the region will require a plant capable of processing 80,000 tonnes of food at a time. If a facility is opened in the area, it will create new, green jobs for residents and allow the collected biogas to be used locally. If approved, further research will be carried out to find the most suitable location for the plant. COMMENTS (0)
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