Food waste recycling - FAQs
Frequently asked questions about food waste recycling and collections.
What to expect when collections start
— When will my food waste collections start?
— What can I put in my food waste bin?
— How often will my food waste be collected?
— Why do I have to wait so long for my collections to start?
— Will my food waste bin be collected at the same time as my other bins?
— Can I refuse the bin delivery and opt out of the food waste recycling service?
About your bins, kitchen caddies and caddy liners
— Are the new food waste bins and caddies free? When will they be delivered?
— My neighbour has received their new food waste bins, but I haven’t, what should I do?
— Why do I have to use a liner for my food waste?
— What if I run out of caddy liners?
— I’ve lost my food waste bin, how can I get another one?
— I have a very big family, and I need an extra food waste bin. Can I have one?
— Will the smell of food waste attract pests?
— How do I lock my food waste bin?
— What if I don’t have space for any new bins?
— What if there is no space for new bins at my communal property?
Understanding food waste recycling
— Why should I recycle my food waste?
— What if I already compost my food waste?
— What if I don't waste any food?
— How will my food waste be recycled?
More information
— How is the food waste collection service paid for?
— I want to waste less food, where can I get advice?
— What about recycling plastic pots, tubs, trays and cartons?
When will my food waste collections start?
To see your food waste start date, alongside your other bin collection dates, go to Find Your Bin Collection Day.
What can I put in my food waste bin?
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:
- All uneaten food and plate scrapings
- Raw and cooked meat and fish, including bones
- Tea bags and coffee grounds
- Fruit and vegetables including peelings (raw or cooked), and other parts you can’t use such as pips, stones, and stalks
- Out of date or mouldy food
- Shellfish and seafood shells
- Dairy products such as cheese
- Bread, cakes, pastries
- Eggs and eggshells
- Rice, pasta and beans
- Pet food
These items must not be put into your food waste bin:
- Packaging of any kind (except your caddy liner)
- Glass
- Liquids such as milk, liquid fat or gravy
- Oils such as used cooking oil
- Any material that is not food waste, including cat litter, or animal faeces, pet bedding, garden waste
How often will my food waste be collected?
Once it starts in your area, your food waste will be collected every week on your usual bin day.
Why do I have to wait so long for my collections to start?
Food waste collections are being rolled out across the district in phases between October 2025 and March 2026. There are 7 new food waste rounds, and these will start at different times. All households will be receiving collections by the end of March 2026.
Will my food waste bin be collected at the same time as my other bins?
One 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 6:30am 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.
Can I refuse the bin delivery and opt out of the food waste recycling service?
New Government recycling regulations come into force from 01 April 2026 which require the council to give every resident the opportunity to recycle food waste from their homes.
The bins and caddies are provided free of charge to allow this and should be stored for future use if they aren’t immediately required.
Did you know? We are able to collect both raw and cooked food for recycling, including several things that cannot be home composted such as meat and fish bones. See the full list in ‘What can I put in my food waste bin?’
We strongly suggest you recycle your food waste as you’ll be contributing to the generation of clean, green energy and you’ll notice a reduction in the amount of waste in your black bin.
Are the new food waste bins and caddies free? When will they be delivered?
Yes, your first new kitchen caddy and outdoor food waste bins will be delivered to you free of charge. We will deliver them during the three weeks before your food waste collections start.
My neighbour has received their new food waste bins, but I haven’t, what should I do?
We will do our best to deliver the new bins to every household at least a week before their first food waste recycling collection. For some households it will be up to three weeks before.
Your new outdoor food waste bin (along with your kitchen caddy, starter roll of caddy liners and information leaflet) will be delivered on your usual bin collection day, up to three weeks before your first food waste collection. You can check when your food waste collections are due by searching for your address in the look up at the top of the page.
If your bin collections are usually on a Monday, for example, we aim to deliver your new containers on the same day in the 3 weeks leading up to your first collection. If we cannot deliver all the 'Monday' bins in one day, we will come back to complete the deliveries the following Monday.
If your first food waste collection is due this week and you haven’t received your bins, please call our customer service team on 0300 300 0013 or email customerservice@winchester.gov.uk so we can arrange a delivery for you.
If your first collection is more than three weeks away, don’t worry, your bin bundle will be delivered up to three weeks before your first collection is due.
Why do I have to use a liner for my food waste?
As you can imagine, raw food or food that has been left out of the fridge for several days could contain harmful germs. This is not dangerous to you if you properly tie up the bags and wash your hands after handling your bins (as you would normally).
To protect the crews who collect food waste, it must always be presented in a bag, such as a compostable liner, that is tied at the top. If food waste is presented without a liner, our crews will not be able to collect it.
What if I run out of caddy liners?
Caddy liners are available to buy at most supermarkets, and you can pick these up as part of your usual shopping. Alternatively, you can purchase compostable caddy liners online.
If you find that you have run out and don’t have time to go to the shops, you can re-use single use plastic bags like the bag your bread comes in, or the inside plastic liner of a cereal box. Likewise, if your local shop (such as some Co-Ops) provides compostable carrier bags, you are welcome to use these. Although these alternatives may not fit your caddy so neatly, they can help to keep you recycling before you buy your next roll of compostable liners.
I’ve lost my food waste bin; how can I get another one?
It’s important to label your bin as soon as you get it so that it can be easily identified and returned to you if it is moved or blown around by windy weather.
If you’ve checked around your immediate neighbourhood, asked your neighbours and you still can’t find it, we will provide a free replacement during the rollout period from October 2025 to March 2026.
Please call our customer service team on 0300 300 0013 or email customerservice@winchester.gov.uk so we can arrange a delivery for you.
I have a very big family, and I need an extra food waste bin. Can I have one?
The council would like to help you to waste less food rather than giving you an extra food waste bin. If you need help, please email recycling@winchester.gov.uk and someone will be able to visit you and discuss how we can help.
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:
- Shopping smart by making meals plans and lists
- Keeping your food fresh for longer by improving your storage
- Getting creative to make the most of your leftovers
Will the smell of food waste attract pests?
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). Both your kitchen caddy and your outdoor food waste bin have 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 bins can be kept locked and are emptied more often.
How do I lock my food waste bin?
Both your kitchen caddy and outdoor bin have lockable handles. 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.
What if I don’t have space for any new bins?
The kitchen caddy (5L) is small enough to fit on a work surface, under the kitchen sink or on a window sill in your kitchen.
The outdoor food waste bin (23L) is smaller than your other bins and will take up a lot less room. Some people store these in a garden shed, in the front garden or next to the front or back door for easy access. They are lighter and smaller so can be carried through the house to put outside on bin day.
If you are tight on space, you might consider sharing a bin with a neighbour.
What if there is no space for new bins at my communal property?
All communal properties will receive one small (140L) wheelie bin per bin store. This bin is significantly smaller than the usual 600L to 1100L bins. If you are worried that there is no space for even a small bin, please ask the person responsible for managing waste at your property (this could be you, your managing agent, landlord or housing association) to contact the council by emailing recycling@winchester.gov.uk.
There is also a lot of helpful information available at www.winchester.gov.uk/landlord-waste-recycling to help those responsible for communal properties to follow the new rules.
The kitchen caddy (5L) is small enough to fit on a work surface, under the kitchen sink or on a windowsill in your kitchen.
Why should I recycle my food waste?
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 6 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 8 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.
What if I already compost my food waste?
Composting is great way of recycling food waste. So if you can compost some of your food waste at home, you can carry on doing so.
Some things that cannot be composted at home, such as meat and fish bones and solid dairy products, can be recycled with anaerobic digestion. Even if you only recycle a small amount – every bit can be used to create helpful byproducts like biogas and nutrient rich fertiliser.
Recycling just two tea bags through anaerobic digestion can create enough electricity to fully charge a smartphone.
What if I don't waste any food?
Many people are careful not to waste edible food. However, some food waste is unavoidable, such as the inedible parts like fruit peels and seeds / pits, eggshells, coffee grounds, animal bones, and tea bags.
Even if you only recycle a small amount – every bit can be used to create helpful byproducts like biogas, green energy, and nutrient rich fertiliser.
Recycling just two tea bags through anaerobic digestion can create enough electricity to fully charge a smartphone.
How will my food waste be recycled?
Your food waste will be sent to an Anaerobic Digestion (AD) facility. AD is a natural process where plant and animal materials (biomass) are broken down by micro-organisms in the absence of air. The AD process begins when biomass is put inside a sealed tank or digester.
This produces a mixture of methane and carbon dioxide, known as biogas, which is then upgraded for use as a source of heat, electricity, or transport fuel. The remaining material from the digestion process (digestate) is rich in nutrients, so it can be used as a fertiliser by local farmers.
How is the food waste collection service paid for?
From April 2026, new government regulations will require councils to provide food waste recycling collections. To help with the cost of this, the UK Government (through DEFRA – the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs) is giving the council funding to set up and run the service. This money is specifically for food waste collections and can’t be used for anything else.
I want to waste less food, where can I get advice?
Throwing away edible food is a waste of energy (the power and effort that has gone into producing it) and money. Food waste costs the average UK family of four £1000 per year*.
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:
- Shopping smart by making meals plans and lists
- Keeping your food fresh for longer by improving your storage
- Getting creative to make the most of your leftovers
What about recycling plastic pots, tubs, trays and cartons?
Winchester City Council is a Waste Collection Authority (WCA) and it’s our job to collect all your waste for recycling or disposal. The job of making sure the waste we’ve collected gets recycled or disposed of correctly belongs to Hampshire County Council as the Waste Disposal Authority (WDA).
Hampshire’s current Materials Recovery Facility (MRF) is due to be replaced by early 2028 so from then, everyone in Hampshire should be able to recycle the full range of materials such as plastic pots, tubs, trays, cartons and flexible plastics from home. Unfortunately, these items are not yet recyclable from home in Hampshire and therefore cannot be put in your green bin.