RESIDENTS in Wokingham are being urged to line their food caddies with an environmentally friendly alternative.
This is part of Wokingham Borough Council’s effort to reduce the use of non-recyclable single-use plastics.
For the past two years, the council has given every household a supply of non-biodegradable caddy liners to line their food waste bins in an effort to drive up food waste recycling.
The council’s new Liberal Democrat administration, in power since May 2022, have decided not to continue supplying the bags and are instead encouraging residents to use environmentally friendly alternatives.
Cllr Ian Shenton, executive member for environment, sport and leisure, said: “Production and disposal of non-recyclable single-use plastics result in greenhouse gas emissions and often end up polluting our rivers and seas.
“At a time when we are encouraging all residents to decrease their use of single-use plastics, it just doesn’t make sense for us to continue to supply food waste bags that are single-use plastic.”
Food waste collected from residents in Wokingham borough is taken to a recycling facility managed by re3, our waste management partner.
The food caddy liners are burned and the energy captured after the food waste inside is removed for further processing at the facility.
Cllr Shenton has suggested a range of alternatives which are better for the planet.
He said: “Residents can line their kitchen caddies with a compostable liner, newspaper or any soft plastic bag they have that they were going to throw away, such as carrier bags, bread bags, cereal bags or fruit and vegetable bags.
“Residents can also instead line the bottom with newspaper or used kitchen paper, emptying it into the outdoor caddy, and wash both between uses.”
As a result of encouraging more environmentally friendly alternatives, the council will no longer supply additional food caddy liners, beyond its annual supply delivered to all households earlier this year.
Previously, residents were able to get extra food caddy liners in a number of locations, such as libraries, in the borough. The council has run out of these and will not be ordering more.
For the same environmental concerns, the council has also decided not to include food caddy liners in its annual delivery of blue bin bags to residents starting 2023.
The council estimates that caddy liners cost around £75,000 this year, but were not included in the budget.
The estimated cost for the caddy liners for next year is just under £120,000, primarily the result of rising oil prices.
Cllr Clive Jones, leader of the council, believes it “doesn’t make sense” to commit to this cost.
He said: “The previous administration did not budget for these caddy liners, so to supply them we would have to take the money from something else.
“In this perilous time when costs are rising across the board, it just doesn’t make sense for us to continue to supply these, particularly as they are bad for the environment.”
The council is working on a new waste collection strategy for when the current waste collection contract ends in 2026
It will be asking residents for their views on the options later this year.
