FOGO goes shire wide from July

Published on 09 April 2021

In July, Council will expand the Food Organics Garden Organics (FOGO) service shire-wide to all Macedon Ranges households. This completes the roll-out, which began in February 2020 to over 16,000 properties across the shire.

Properties and households new to the FOGO service will receive a letter detailing upcoming changes in the coming weeks, including the date for bin deliveries.

“Since the FOGO bins launched, over 9,257 tonnes of organic material has been saved from landfill,” said Shane Walden, Director Assets and Operations.

FOGO material is turned into a nutrient-rich compost for farms and gardens across Victoria. It will also help local school gardens grow, with Council supplying free compost during Compost Awareness Week (2-8 May).

“A recent audit of rural general waste bins showed that 45% of the contents were either compostable or recyclable through correct sorting into the right bin,” said Mr Walden.

“The shire-wide roll-out of FOGO ensures all households can dispose of food and garden organics in an environmentally friendly way. This reduces the amount of waste that goes into landfill.” Mr Walden highlighted that FOGO services complement existing home composting systems by taking overflow during the colder months when compost can be slower to break down.

“Many people manage their households food and garden waste through home composting, worm farms, chickens and livestock. FOGO services can compost things that worms and chickens don’t like to eat. This includes things such as meat, bones, seafood, rose prunings, and weeds, including noxious weeds (for example, blackberries and gorse), pet droppings, compostable kitty litter, compostable packaging and more.”

Learn more about FOGO by visiting mrsc.vic.gov.au/FOGO or contacting Council on 5422 0333.