FOGO (Food organics garden organics)

FOGO is a combined Food Organics, Garden Organics (FOGO) food recycling service that turns your green lid bin contents into compost for farmers. Your green lid bin accepts all food scraps including meats, dairy and bones with your regular household garden organics.

You will need a small container to collect your food scraps in the kitchen and a green lid wheelie bin to present weekly for collection. 

You can order both using the links at the top of the page.

All councils in NSW are required by the state government to provide a food recycling service by 2030. Inner West Council is leading the way as on of the first Sydney councils to introduce it. Composting your food scraps through the green lid bin helps to:

• Support local farmers and the agricultural industry
• Create full-time employment opportunities
• Further Australia's domestic waste processing capacity
• Develop Australian Made products and improve the local economy 
• Reduce waste to landfill and support a circular economy 
• Minimise the impacts of climate change

You can use any container to transfer your food scraps – including meats, dairy, and bones – into the green lid bin.

Use your kitchen benchtop bin and compostable liners to easily transfer your scraps from kitchen to kerb:

1. Line your kitchen benchtop bin with the compostable liners provided. You can also use newspaper or put your food scraps in 'nude’ (without a liner)
2. Collect food scraps, expired food and old takeaway in your kitchen benchtop bin
3. Empty into your green lid bin as needed
4. Cover your scraps with leaves, branches or grass clippings. This will keep your bin smelling fresh

It's not mandatory to use the supplied benchtop bin. You can use any container that suits your kitchen size or aesthetic. 

You can request a benchtop bin by clicking on the button below. You can also request a replacement lid, handle or benchtop bin if required.  

Order a kitchen benchtop bin

Your food and garden organics are processed by Topsoil Organics who create soil conditioners, compost and fertiliser. 

Firstly, your FOGO is cleaned by removing contamination (by hand and with machinery). It's then shredded into smaller pieces so healthy fungi and bacteria can break it down. The shredded material is transferred to a composting platform (called windrows) where heat, water and oxygen turn it to a soil-like material. 

FOGO material is tested to ensure compliance with EPA and Australian Standards and screened into a range of product sizes prior to sale.

Three common products include:

Soil conditioners - like hair conditioners - increase the strength of soils by providing essential nutrients. Soil conditioners can increase the water holding capacity of soils - meaning they can absorb more water during intense rainfall. This reduces soil erosion, flood damage and increases the amount of water they can store for periods of drought. Climate resilient soils are critical as weather patterns become more extreme and less predictable. 

Compost - compost provides essential nutrients such as nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium (N P K). Compost increases the abundance and diversity of microbes in the soil which allows plants to access more nutrients in the soil. This improves plant growth and means more grass on your sporting fields or more corn on your cob!

Fertiliser - organic fertilisers provide a balanced and slow release of essential nutrients to the soil. This reduces the risk of polluting waterways and provides a more reliable source of food for crops. Fertilisers made from FOGO are created using natural feedstocks and require far less energy than synthetic fertilisers.

Three good reasons farmers want your FOGO to make their compost: 

1. Compost creates more resilient soils – compost increases the amount of water absorbed by soils. This reduces flooding during intense rainfall and stores water for longer during times of drought.
   
   
2. Compost returns vital nutrients to the soil and reduces farmers’ reliance on artificial fertilisers - synthetic fertilisers are expensive and can harm streams, estuaries and river systems.
   
   
3. Compost enhances the natural immunity of soils - this helps soils naturally fight off disease and decreases the reliance on synthetic pesticides and herbicides. Healthy crops mean better quality produce and more food for you, your family and your friends.  

That's great! Home composting avoids emissions from transporting food organics to a licenced composting facility and produces a nutrient rich product that can be used on your garden. We encourage all residents to continue using existing home composting systems for their food scraps, or reach out to us if they'd like to start.

There are some items like meat, dairy, rice and grains, which are best not composted at home. You can use your green lid FOGO bin to keep them out of landfill.

Residents can establish a home composting system through our home composting programs.

No, you don't. Putting food in loose without using a liner is the most environmentally friendly way to FOGO. If you choose to put food in loose, here's some tips to get you started:

• Use an airtight container to collect your scraps. This minimises smells in your kitchen
• Store your container near your knife block, under the sink, in your fridge or next your bin as a reminder to use it. Make sure it is stored away from direct sunlight
• Empty your container regularly in the warmer months (2 to 3 times per week)
• Cover food scraps in your green lid wheelie bin by layering these with garden organics to help absorb liquids, reduce odours and avoid the attraction of pests

If you're new to FOGO, liners can make food recycling easy and mess-free. We recommend emptying your benchtop bin 2-3 times per week in the summer months to reduce odours.

Compostable bin liners are delivered every May and November to houses and apartments.

One pack of liners will last the average household up to 6-months. We know not all households will use them at the same rate so residents can access liners over the counter at all Council service centres and libraries. Alternatively, liners are available from our mobile customer service stalls held throughout the community from Tuesday to Saturday.

Residents can purchase liners from major supermarkets, independent grocers and hardware retailers. Please make sure to purchase green liners with the seedling logo, marked AS4736. Council uses an 8 litre liner to fit the 7L and 5L slim line benchtop bins.

Regular plastic bags and "biodegradable" or "degradable" bags will contaminate the compost used by farmers. 

No - regular plastic bags and "biodegradable" or "degradable" bags are not accepted. These bags will not decompose and will contaminate the compost used by farmers to grow food.

Only use Council provided liners, or green liners that are certified compostable (look for the seedling logo). Council liners are 8 litres in size and fit both the 7L and 5L slimline benchtop bins. 

You can check your collection day via the waste calendar.

See how to make a cheap, all-natural deodorising spray with items in your pantry.

Almost  300  tonnes  of  food  scraps  from  the Inner  West  used to go into landfill every single week before FOGO. That's why it's important food scraps are collected weekly and processed into compost for farmers.

We understand that a shift to fortnightly garbage collections can feel like a big change for some, so we have a few supports in place to help you manage:

1. Book and extra red lid bin collection when you need it. Council can provide an additional garbage collection (in the alternate week to the scheduled pick-up) to assist households transition to fortnightly garbage.
2. Upsize to a large (240L) garbage bin on fortnightly collection
3. Request an additional recycling bin - you can order a recycling or FOGO bin at no extra cost. Checkout Council's A-Z: What Goes Where guide for more ideas on how a wide range of items can be recycled, reused, donated or sold, rather than thrown in the red lid garbage bin.
4. Contact our Waste Busters - they're our helpful team who will  look at your waste and give you tips on how to create space in your red lid bin and make FOGO work for you.

Unfortunately, the chemicals and plastics in disposable nappies and incontinence pads mean they can't be disposed of in the green lid bin and must be sent to landfill. The same is true of pet waste and most commercial cat litter products.

We understand that some families may find this transition challenging and so are offering a range of options to support households struggling with FOGO:

1. Book and extra red lid bin collection when it's really needed. Council is offering an additional booked collection of red lid garbage bins (in the alternate week to the scheduled pick-up) to assist households whilst they transition to the weekly FOGO and fortnightly garbage.  
2. Upsize to a large (240L) garbage bin on fortnightly collection
3. Opt-in for a week red lid garbage bin collection - You can register for weekly red lid garbage bin collections. Priority will be given to those households that need it most first (such as medical reasons, disability,  large volumes of nappies or large families of 5 or more).

Research  undertaken by Lake Macquarie council  identified  that odours  from  nappies are  at their peak after 3 days, meaning the  smell  does  not  get  worse  after  this  time.  The smell will  not  differ whether red lid garbage bins are collected weekly or fortnightly. The  smell can be reduced by wrapping nappies in a plastic bag and storing your bin in a shady spot where possible.

You might also like to check out the details of our reusable nappy rebate.