FOGO

Council has introduced a compulsory Food Organics and Garden Organics (FOGO) waste kerbside service for all Southern Grampians Shire residents currently receiving the compulsory waste and recycling service.

The FOGO bin is for food waste and garden waste and is collected fortnightly, on the same day as the garbage. (Refer to the waste calendar for your zone).

The organic waste is transported to Camperdown, where it is composted and used as a fertiliser and soil improver on farms.

Please keep in mind that only materials that can be composted should be placed in your organic waste bin.

You are responsible for keeping your organics bin in working condition. Lost or damaged bins (unless done so by the contractor) will need to be replaced. Please contact Customer Service on 5573 0444 for costs and further information.

Easy English guide to FOGO

Please enter your address here to find your next pick up date and download your calendar.

The service is an easy way for households to actively make a positive difference to our environment. Around 56% of rubbish in our garbage bins is organic – food and garden waste. The collection of FOGO material reduces the amount of waste going to landfill, decreases greenhouse gas emissions and produces quality compost.

The State Government has announced it will be increasing the Landfill Levy for the next three years, so the cost to Council of putting waste in landfill will continue to increase. Reducing the amount of rubbish put into landfill reduces this cost.

Additionally, under the State Government’s recently announced Circular Economy Policy, all Councils in Victoria will need to implement a FOGO service over the next few years.

All food waste (raw and cooked), meat, bones and garden waste. This includes any type of food scraps, unwanted leftovers, bones, eggshells, tea bags and tea leaves, seafood shells, coffee grounds, weeds, small branches, grass clippings, cuttings, dead flowers, pet fur and pet droppings.

Plastic, food packaging, nappies, fabrics and textiles, garden hoses, rocks, tree stumps, plant pots, building material, soil, glass or metal, household rubbish, treated/painted/laminated or stained timber. These items are not acceptable for compost and your service may be suspended if you place incorrect items in your FOGO bin. Please note that our contractor's collection trucks are equipped with cameras to monitor bin contamination.

FOGO bins will be collected fortnightly, on the alternate week to the recycle bin (yellow lid).

During Spring (September to November) we will collect it weekly to assist with removing the large amount of garden waste produced in Spring.

Yes. You will have to pay Council for the new FOGO Bin (lime green lid), then it will be delivered to your property. The cost of the new bin is $85.00.

You will also receive a kitchen caddy free of charge for collection of food scraps. The annual residential kerbside waste fee for garbage, recycling and FOGO will be charged via your Council rates.

FOGO waste is taken away by our kerbside waste contractor. It is then turned into compost by an EPA-licensed composter and used as a soil improver on farms and in gardens.

If you're already composting, we encourage you to keep going. FOGO is complementary to your home compost system or worm farm. It provides additional capacity for garden waste, excess food and hard-to-compost items such as meat, citrus, chilli and processed foods.

Additionally, under the State Government’s recently revised Circular Economy Policy, all Councils in Victoria will need to implement a compulsory FOGO service over the next few years.

The kitchen caddy is for easy collection of kitchen waste such as vegetable peelings, food scraps, egg shells, tea bags etc.

All bags used with the kitchen caddy must be compostable bags. 'Biodegradable' or 'Degradable' bags MUST NOT be used, as these can still contain plastic and just break down into smaller bits of plastic. The correct bags can be purchased from Customer Service at 111 Brown St or 1 Market Place, Hamilton. The current price is $5.00 for a roll of 75. They are also available for purchase at Woolworths, Coles and IGA supermarkets.

The use of compostable bags in the caddy is optional. It can also be lined with paper towel or newspaper or, you can go without a liner all together and just rinse your caddy after emptying.

See our handy guide to bin liners here.

Please call Customer Service on 5573 0444 or email your questions to council@sthgrampians.vic.gov.au.