Required under the Environment Act 2021, 'Simpler Recycling' aims to increase household recycling rates by making it possible for people across the country to recycle the same materials without needing to check what their council will accept.
Further details can be found in the Simpler Recycling Government response.
As a result, the council can confirm that:
From April 2026, new national rules mean all councils must provide food waste recycling.
To help pay for this, the UK Government (through DEFRA – the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs) is giving the council ring-fenced funding. This money is specifically for setting up food waste collections and can't be used for any other services. We'll use it to introduce the service, initially in the pilot area, before rolling it out borough-wide in the Autumn and keep it running efficiently.
Owing to the collection routes we are unable to inform you of specific wards, roads or postcode areas, however if you are part of the pilot area you would have already received your introduction letter, along with your indoor and outdoor caddies to recycle leftovers and unused food.
If you haven’t received a letter then you will not be part of the pilot scheme, however we will be rolling out collections borough-wide by October 2026.
Food waste collections are being rolled out across the borough in phases starting in April 2026. All households will be receiving collections by the end of October 2026.
We will be supplying a kitchen caddy to households to encourage residents to start collecting food waste. However, if you'd prefer to use a kitchen caddy of your own choosing you are free to do so. The food waste collected in your kitchen caddy must be wrapped and transferred into the outdoor food waste bin we provide, or once introduced, to the communal bin at your residence.
If you do not wish to recycle your food in this way the council will NOT be collecting unwanted caddies.
On the same day, yes, but not at the same time. Your food waste bins will be collected by a different vehicle at a different time to your other bins. This could be before or after your other bins are collected.
Please make sure all your bins are put outside for collection by 7am on your usual collection day, to avoid any of your bins being missed. If you usually like to bring your empty bins in as soon as the lorries have passed, you may need to wait until your food waste bin has been collected.
You can recycle used carrier bags, bread bags or small bin liners. These do not need to be compostable or biodegradable because once your food waste is taken to the Anaerobic Digestion Centre everything goes through a special process and bags are removed. Don’t worry – they don’t go to waste. Removing the bags is all part of the process! Any plastic bag will do – used carrier bags, bread bags or small bin liners.
Just food please, no packaging or liquids. All food items can be recycled as food waste.
All your raw and cooked food waste leftovers can be put into your food waste bin, including:
These items must not be put into your food waste bin:
Once it starts in your area, your food waste will be collected every week on your usual bin day.
The council would like to help you to waste less food rather than giving you an extra food waste bin.
Hampshire County Council’s Smart Living webpage has some information that could help you to waste less food and there are some great tips on the Love Food Hate Waste website.
You can also visit Hampshire Kitchen Heroes and download their app that rewards you for taking steps to reduce your food waste such as:
If you recycle your food waste separately, it will be collected every week - more often than if you leave it mixed with your general waste (every two weeks). Your outdoor caddy has a locking handle to stop unwanted animal visitors from getting to your food waste.
Recycling food waste in the containers provided should reduce pest activity, because the bin can be kept locked and are emptied more often.
Your outdoor caddy has a lockable handle. You can move the handle to the forward position to lock it.
When the handle is in the upright position for carrying, this also secures the lid in the locked position to avoid spillages.
Note: The mechanism can be tight at first, so don’t be afraid to put pressure on the handle to close the lid. If you keep it in a locked (forward) position it should move more easily over time.
Once collected, your food waste goes to a special facility where it's checked, cleaned and goes through anaerobic digestion. This is a natural process where micro-organisms break it down to create eco-friendly energy to help heat our homes. It is also used to create fertiliser for UK farms to help crops grow.
That's great! Composting is an easy way to reduce the amount of waste in your bin. As well as taking a lot of waste, such as peelings, uncooked vegetables, tea bags, straw and pet bedding, a composter will make useful compost for your garden.
However, you cannot put all your food waste into your compost bin, such as bones, meat products, cooked vegetables etc, so we recommend you use your food waste collection service for these items. Refer to the list above to find out what you can and cannot include in your food waste bin.
Weekly food waste collections are a statutory government service and we will be issuing all households with an indoor kitchen caddy and an outdoor food waste bin. Once introduced borough wide a separate food waste bin will be provided for those who have communal bins.
Separating your food waste from your rubbish will reduce the amount you are currently putting in your waste bin and increase the amount you recycle which is vital for reducing carbon emissions. Food waste recycling also creates power for the borough and helps UK farms by producing fertiliser.
If you do not wish to recycle your food waste in this way, the council will NOT be collecting unwanted caddies.
We will provide one kitchen caddy and one outdoor food waste bin to each property. Now is a great time to start thinking about the amount of food waste you throw away and whether this could be avoided to help save you money and cut your carbon footprint. Visit the Love Food Hate Waste website for recipes and tips to reduce your food waste.
Yes, your kitchen caddy is made from recycled plastic and can go in your dishwasher.
Food waste is a huge global problem which we can help to tackle at the local level.
By recycling food waste by anaerobic digestion (AD) we can cut fossil fuel use because we don’t have to burn the waste anymore. If food waste ends up in landfill, it releases harmful greenhouse gas into the environment – which we can avoid by recycling instead.
The by-products of AD are used to generate clean, renewable energy and heat. The left-over material from the digestion process (digestate) is rich in nutrients, so it can be used as a natural fertiliser for our local farmers.
Every bit of food waste that is recycled will make a difference, no matter how small. For example, recycling six tea bags makes enough energy to boil a kettle for another cup of tea and a full kitchen caddy can make enough energy to toast eight slices of bread.
We all want to protect the environment and recycling food waste from home is a good way to play our part in dealing with the climate emergency.
Another great reason to recycle food is that you will be able to see exactly how much you are wasting every week and make changes to help you and your family waste less food and save money.
For information to help you reduce food waste, visit Love Food Hate Waste.
The small indoor caddy is 5 litres and the larger outdoor caddy is 23 litres.
You can now log a missed bin collection yourself using the new customer portal.
You need to report a missed bin by 4pm the following working day of your scheduled collection.
To report a missed bin, you will need to select the scheduled collection that has been missed within the portal calendar. If the status of the collection is ‘closed-complete’ and no problem has been logged by the crew, you can log a missed bin. Please select ‘problem with your collection’ and then ‘bin has not been emptied’. Once confirmed you will be advised that the missed bin has been reported. Please leave your bin presented at the kerbside of your property and the crew will aim to return within two working days.