Huntingdonshire District Council (HDC) will be launching its new weekly food waste recycling service, with collections beginning from 30 March 2026.
This new, free scheme is funded by central government, so there will be no extra cost to residents. It aims to make food waste recycling easier for residents and is a simple way to contribute to reducing carbon emissions and provide a greener future for Huntingdonshire.
Instead of being disposed of in landfills, the collected food waste will now go through a process called anaerobic digestion, where it will be turned into renewable energy and nutrient-rich fertiliser.
Some households around the district have already received a 7-litre kitchen caddy to use indoors and a 23-litre food waste bin for outdoors. Deliveries of caddies are still underway and all residents should receive them by 28 March.
Residents in communal properties (flats or shared housing) will be receiving an indoor caddy and a larger communal bin for food waste. All food waste, including fruit and vegetable peelings, leftover food, tea bags and coffee grounds, bread, rice, pasta, meat and fish and pet food, should no longer go in your general waste bin and should be put in your food waste caddy to be recycled.
Cllr Julie Kerr, Executive Councillor for Parks and Countryside, Waste and Street Scene, said: “This new weekly food waste recycling service is a simple but powerful way for all of us to protect our environment. The easy change of separating food waste from household waste is something that the whole family can get involved in and will make it clearer how much food gets thrown away. It will hopefully reduce both waste and household costs by buying less food and together we can make Huntingdonshire greener for future generations.”
HDC has also recently launched a Name the Food Waste Truck competition for local schools, encouraging pupils to get involved in naming and designing artwork for the new collection vehicles. This competition aims to involve younger residents in the roll-out of the new, environmentally-friendly service.
The bin collection schedule is now available to view on the online bin calendar.