food waste collection FAQs

We provide a weekly food waste collection to residents in North Somerset.

How often is my food waste collected?

Food waste is collected weekly. Find out your collection dates online. Please leave your recycling box on the edge of your property nearest the road by 7am on your day of collection.

How do you collect my food waste?

Every household (except flats or groups of properties that have communal waste and recycling areas) is given two food caddies - a small one for storing food waste in your kitchen and a larger one for presenting your food waste for collection. We encourage you to put your house number on your box to help us identify it and return it to the correct property.

What materials can I put in my food caddy?

Read our what can be recycled FAQs for more information.

I've just moved in and don't have a food caddy, where can I get one?

If you're a new resident, you can request a food caddy online.

Is there a limit to how much recycling I can leave out for collection?

You should make sure that your food waste caddy can be closed to prevent animals getting at the contents. If you have a larger family you can request a second food waste caddy if you need it. If your caddy is regularly overflowing you should think about ways to reduce your food waste.

My food waste caddy hasn't been returned or is damaged, can I have another one?

Yes, you can report that your food waste caddy is missing or damaged online. You'll need to place the damaged bin outside your property for our crews to collect and you'll receive a replacement within 10 working days.

What if my food waste caddy is lost or stolen?

You can request a replacement food waste caddy online. Crews will then deliver the replacement bin to your property within 10 working days.

My food waste hasn't been collected, will you come back for it?

If you think your recycling should've been collected but it wasn't, your can report a missed collection online, within 48 hours of your collection being due. We will then come back and collect it.

Will I be told why my food waste wasn't collected?

Crews leave a tag on a caddy that couldn't be collected to explain why.

I'm elderly or disabled and struggle to put my food waste caddy out for collection, can I get help?

Yes, we can arrange for you to have an assisted collection.

How big are the food caddies?

The kitchen caddy holds five litres and the sealable caddy for presenting your waste for collection holds 23 litres.

Isn’t it ok to throw away food waste because natural materials will just rot down?

Kitchen rubbish like leftover food can produce methane - a highly potent greenhouse gas - as it degrades because the food waste isn’t exposed to oxygen as it breaks down in landfill. As well as being damaging to the environment, it is better to recycle food waste so that it can be used as a soil enricher.

Won't the food waste bin smell?

The food waste bin has a sealable lid and can be stored indoors or outdoors without risk of it being broken into by vermin. Using a compostable liner or wrapping the food waste in a newspaper or kitchen roll prior to putting it in the bin will help soak up any liquids and reduce fruit flies. Regularly cleaning the bin will help to prevent any smells that may arise.

Can I put my food waste caddy or bin in the dishwasher?

No, the containers are not dishwasher proof.

Should I line my food caddy with anything?

We recommend that you line your food waste caddy to keep it clean. Please only use newspaper, kitchen roll, brown paper bags or compostable bags that display the compost seeding logo.

Isn't it better to compost food waste?

We still encourage you to compost at home and use our collection service for those elements of food waste that aren't suitable for home composting.

Why can’t you take food waste and green garden waste together?

Green garden waste can be composted without any further treatment but food waste needs to be treated differently due to the 2005 Animal By-Products Regulations.

What happens to the food waste after you have collected it?

Food waste is composted at a specialist treatment facility and heated to over 60 degrees celcius to kill any bacteria. The product of this process will be used as an agricultural soil enricher.

What food waste items will you collect?

cooked and raw food
meat and fish
bones
dairy products
vegetables and fruits*
cheese
yoghurt
rice and pasta
vegetable and fruit peelings*
egg shells*
pet food
paper towels and tissues*
tea bags and coffee grounds*

*These items can be home composted

Where can I buy compostible food waste liners?

You can buy food waste liners online, from most major supermarkets and some local shops.

These retailers have been suggested by residents and have not been checked or endorsed by North Somerset Council:

All Green
Amors, Wrington
Asda
Bio-caddy liners
Blagdon stores
Caddies and liners
Cross Tree Store, Walton in Gordano
Green Pig Eco Store
John Brown Hardware, Nailsea
Just Green
Kitchen Waste Bags
Morrisons
Sainsbury's
Southcombes Hardware, Weston-super-Mare
Spar
Tesco
Waitrose
Wilkinson

Why can't I use bags marked as degradable or biodegradable?

Bags that are marked as 'degradable' or 'biodegradable' must not be used in your food waste containers, as they don't break down sufficiently at the composting facility where the food waste is sent.

What are the benefits of collecting food waste?

Collecting food waste separately for recycling means we are helping to:

divert biodegradable waste from landfill
improve recycling rates
reduce waste disposal costs as landfill costs increase
reduce environmental impacts associated with landfill (toxicity in leachate, landfill gas emissions)
reduce greenhouse gas emissions by removing the putrescent content from landfill sites
produce compost and liquid fertilisers for use as a soil enrichers
remove the the content of your waste that can cause bad smells