Over the next few weeks, more homes across Thurrock will receive food caddies and outdoor food bins as weekly food waste collections continue to roll out across the borough, following recent pilots.
From 1 July 2024, residents across the borough will begin receiving their new indoor food caddy for the kitchen and a lockable outdoor food waste bin. It will take nearly 6 weeks to deliver bins and caddies to every house in the borough. Residents should put their first food waste out on their normal bin day, the week after they receive their bin.
Alongside their bins and caddies, residents will also receive a leaflet that explains exactly how food waste collections will work, and a roll of compostable caddy liners to get everyone started.
Food waste will be collected every week on the same day that waste and recycling bins are collected. Each household’s first collection will be the week after they receive their new bins.
Caddies and lockable outdoor food bins are for leftover food, fruit and vegetable peels, bones, tea bags, coffee grounds and any plate scrapings. The outdoor food waste bin should be filled from the caddy and put out for collection every week.
It means that food waste should no longer be disposed of as part of general waste in the green or grey wheelie bin.
The service is being introduced because a change in legislation means, from 2026, local authorities have a legal obligation to provide a separate weekly food waste collection service.
More information on food waste collections can be found at www.thurrock.gov.uk/foodbins
It is more complex to introduce food waste collections in flats or sheltered accommodation units, so these will not be included in this phase. We are working hard to extend the scheme to these properties as soon as possible.