City of Ballarat seeks kerbside organics processor

The City of Ballarat has put out a tender for a processor to accept and process the municipality’s food organics and garden organics (FOGO) materials.

The processor is expected to accept up to 21,500 tonnes of FOGO a year, collected from more than 50,000 households.

The City of Ballarat is working towards the introduction of the new FOGO kerbside collection in 2025, in line with the Victorian Government’s statewide introduction of FOGO by 1 July 2027.

As part of the tender, the contractor must provide a processing site with required Environment Protection Authority approvals to accept and process FOGO materials, including biodegradable caddy liners, into valuable products that can be resold and used.

The tender is also seeking opportunities for the City of Ballarat to buy back the processed product for use in city operations and by residents.

Bridget Wetherall, City of Ballarat Director Infrastructure and Environment, said it is exciting to see progress on the rollout of the new service, which will significantly reduce the volume of food waste sent to landfill.

“Audits show food waste makes up 41 per cent of what goes in household waste bins – which adds up to an estimated 9000 tonnes of food that is thrown out every year,” said Wetherall.

“Diverting food waste from landfill will reduce the volume of methane, a powerful gas that contributes to climate change, that is generated when organic waste breaks down in landfill.

“Our goal is for FOGO to be recycled and turned into compost for our city’s public gardens as well as residents’ own gardens.”

The new FOGO service will be provided to about 51,000 residential properties (forecast number of properties in 2025) under 4000 square metres that receive a City of Ballarat kerbside waste and recycling service.

Larger properties will be able to opt-in to the FOGO service for an annual fee. These properties are now able to opt-in to the green waste service for $72 per year.

In preparation for the FOGO rollout, in September the City of Ballarat awarded the tender for the supply, co-ordination and delivery of kitchen caddies, caddy liners and service information packs to Cardia Bioplastics.

In 2025, residents will receive a kitchen caddy to collect their food scraps, which they can then add to their current green waste bin with the lime green lid.

The seven-litre caddies will have a carry handle and aerated lid that is made from 100 per cent recyclable material and is dishwasher friendly.

Residents will also receive compostable caddy liners (made from biodegradable plastic suitable for composting) and information packs explaining the new service, including what can and cannot be included in the FOGO bin.

The tender for kerbside organics processing is expected to be awarded in February 2025.

For more information, www.ballarat.vic.gov.au/