9,000 homes to be part of a food waste collection pilot

Next month, over 9,000 households in Blackburn with Darwen will begin having their food waste collected, ahead of a borough wide roll out next year.

In 2026, the government is making it mandatory for all councils in England to provide households with a weekly collection of food waste. This means that residents will need to put food waste into separate bins, which will be collected from all households within the borough by 1 June 2026.

However, from the end of April this year, a pilot will be held which will see our teams collect food waste from 9,205 households, across nine different wards. This is an exciting opportunity for residents to be part of something brand new to the borough, before everyone else gets on board.

Recycling food waste is a crucial step in reducing our emissions, as the food waste will be taken to an anaerobic digestion plant where it will be broken down to produce a biogas. This gas is used to generate renewable energy, heat and electricity and fuel for transport vehicles. The material leftover can be used as fertiliser, compost, or soil improver to grow more food. 

Currently, on average, 44% of the content of residents’ burgundy bins across the borough is food waste. Having a separate collection will allow residents to reduce the amount of waste they have in the burgundy bin and become more aware of the amount of food waste they are producing, which might help save them some money with their food bill!

The pilot will include households from the following wards:

• Billinge & Beardwood
• Roe Lee
• Shear Brow and Corporation Park
• Livesey with Pleasington
• Mill Hill & Moorgate
• Wensley Fold
• Blackburn South & Lower Darwen
• Darwen West
• Darwen East

Council Leader Phil Riley said:

Recycling food waste is another step to ensure we are as sustainable as possible. I hope that offering these collections will illuminate to residents how much waste they’re producing and in turn, help them reduce it.

Having a pilot allows us to learn lessons before we roll out the collections to the rest of the borough. We really want our residents to get on board with this and I look forward to receiving plenty of feedback from those taking part.

Councillor Jim Smith, Executive Member for Environment and Communities said:

It’s important that everyone who has the opportunity to take part in the food waste pilot, does so with full force.

We’re doing as much as we can to support residents with their new collections and I look forward to seeing high recycling rates.

How the food waste collection pilot will work

Residents taking part in the food waste pilot will be delivered two small food waste bins at the beginning of April, for free. This is:

• a 7 litre kitchen caddy to keep inside
• a 23 litre food waste bin to keep outside 

A roll of recycled plastic bags will also be given to line the kitchen caddy which residents can then put food waste in. When the bag is full, it should be tied up and moved to the outside food waste bin.   

Both bins have sealable and lockable lids to stop smells getting out and animals getting in.  

On the day the residents’ other bins are collected, the outside food waste bin will also need to be placed at the front boundary of the property for collection.

For those taking part in the pilot, our teams will no longer take any additional waste or black bags at the side of the burgundy bin. We’ll still collect electrical items and vapes if they are left tied up in a plastic carrier bag next to the grey or blue recycling bin.

What to put in the kitchen caddy

All food waste can be put in the kitchen caddy, which includes:

• Uneaten food and plate scrapings
• Baked goods like bread, cakes and pastries
• Dairy products
• Eggs and eggshells
• Fruit and vegetables including raw and cooked vegetables and peelings
• Out-of-date or mouldy food
• Pet food
• Raw and cooked meat or fish, including bones
• Tea bags and coffee grounds

What not to put in the kitchen caddy

Putting the following in your kitchen caddy will cause issues for the anaerobic digestor:

• Liquids such as milk, tea, coffee
• Non-food products, including nappies
• Packaging of any kind, including plastics

To find out if your property is part of the food waste pilot, you can visit mybins, or watch out for a leaflet dropping through your letterbox over the next few days. And for more information on what to do if you’re part of the pilot, head to our recycling website, which even has videos showing you how to use your new bins.  

We’ll also be holding three engagement events for those taking part in the pilot to attend and learn more about their new food waste collections. Head to our recycling website to find out more about them.