Composting at home can also reduce reliance on chemical fertilisers, expensive soil conditioners and other chemical products.
Composting at home can also reduce reliance on chemical fertilisers, expensive soil conditioners and other chemical products.
FOGO, known as Food Organics and Green Organics, can make up to 70% of your kerbside general waste bin. This completely avoidable waste costs Australian households about $2,000 to $2,500 a year. It is often the heaviest and most recyclable waste in your general waste bin. But what exactly is FOGO?
FOGO consists of organic material which can usually be recycled into beneficial soil conditioners, such as your compost, organic fertilisers and mulch. This is usually divided into food waste (FO) and garden waste (GO).
The National Waste Report 2022 points out approximately 4.69 Mt (megatonnes) of food waste alone was generated by households and businesses. If food ends up in landfill, that’s a waste of the time and effort to grow it. In landfill it will also attract pests while generating odour, leachate and gases like methane, a greenhouse gas 25 times more potent than carbon dioxide. This makes diverting FOGO from landfill a priority in the effort to fight climate change.
In some locations, the processing facility has the capability to accept all kinds of organic material, including cooked food, animal hair and food gone bad. However, most Australians have access to just a GO service (48% of the population), as not all organic processing facilities can manage food waste appropriately.
One of the challenges of processing FOGO bins is managing higher odour risks from food waste, which may affect nearby communities. Another is the lack of awareness of FOGO services and restrictions which may lead to contamination. Well-designed FOGO services which include the provision of kitchen caddies and certified compostable liners, can minimise bin contamination and collect up to 75% of food waste generated in a locale.
So what can you do? If you do not have a FOGO kerbside bin, consider recycling your FOGO yourself. There are now many online guides and resources to help you get the most out of your FOGO, including worm farm and compost guides for homes of every size. If you are a home gardener, one of the unspoken benefits of creating your own compost is the ability to monitor exactly what goes into the soil of your plants.
Composting at home can also reduce reliance on chemical fertilisers, expensive soil conditioners and other chemical products. You can also check with your local council or neighbourhood groups to start or join a communal compost. Plan your groceries and make a list to reduce food waste.
For many businesses, recycling FOGO has its own set of challenges due to strict product requirements and product wastage. Most of these can be recycled and diverted from landfill with new technologies, dedicated bins and better waste education.
Get ready for the FOGO revolution or contact us to learn more about using FOGO to make a sustainable future possible together for your business and organisation.