The Minns Labor government has allocated over $10 million to food waste recovery initiatives as the state moves toward a mandatory recycling framework.
Effective July 1, NSW is set to become the first Australian state to require food waste recycling for specific commercial entities and institutions, including supermarkets, prisons, and universities.
The $10 million package is distributed across three primary sectors:
- Go Fogo ($4.71 million): Funding for six projects to expand or introduce weekly Food Organics and Garden Organics (Fogo) services to 118,000 households. This includes the provision of bins, kitchen caddies, and education campaigns.
- Business Food Waste Partnership ($3.14 million): Support for 18 projects aimed at educating approximately 4200 businesses and 2000 staff on food waste separation.
- Food Rescue ($2.25 million): Grants for 27 projects to provide charities with infrastructure, such as refrigerated trucks and cool rooms.
The funding includes a $100,000 grant to SecondBite, which will facilitate weekend collections at Sydney Markets.
In addition to the immediate business mandates, the state has set a 2030 deadline for all local councils to provide weekly Fogo collections to households.
An additional $21.6 million has been allocated for the next round of the Go Fogo program to assist with this rollout. Applications for this funding remain open until July 2.
“When we bury our food waste in landfill, it takes up space, produces methane and drives up Emissions,” said Penny Sharpe, NSW Minister for Climate Change and the Environment.
“Rolling out Fogo is one of the fastest and most practical steps we can take to cut pollution, turn waste into valuable compost, and support a circular economy.”
- Further reading: Economic modelling tips global food waste worth $800 billion this year.
