Brent Council to launch weekly food waste collections for thousands of flats

"A weekly collection and recycling service for food waste will be starting for around 8,600 households who live in blocks of flats in the borough, Brent Council has announced.

"The service, which is expected to start in spring next year, will extend collection and recycling of food waste to residents of blocks of flats who it could not be provided to before. It will allow Brent to further increase its recycling rate which is now stands at 45 per cent.

"Residents will be able to simply recycle food waste in special kitchen food caddy food liner which are taken out and put into an external container, which will be emptied weekly. The weekly collections will be tailored to blocks of flats and organised, so that food waste containers are stored and collected in a convenient place.

"Councillor James Powney, Lead Member for Environment and Neighbourhoods, said:

"I'm delighted that we will soon be able to allow residents in blocks of flats in Brent to recycle more with a weekly collection and recycling scheme. It means that instead of adding to the costs of sending food waste to landfill, where it can release harmful gases such as methane, it is being recycled and not damaging the environment.

Brent's residents have made great strides in improving recycling since last year including food waste. Now we will be able to do even better."

"Brent Council distributed free caddy liners, which are made of a special corn starch material, to all properties excluding blocks of flats in June this year. The corn starch liners meet the strict environmental standard EN13432 and will easily turn into compost. Every household in Brent is estimated to create around 3kg of food waste each week.

"Since the introduction of the new recycling service Recycle More in autumn 2011, the combined recycling rate in Brent has risen from around 32 per cent to almost 45 per cent."

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