New Lease On Life For Food And Organic Waste

The Allan Labor Government is driving down Victoria’s waste and diverting it from landfill to be recycled into new products – creating new jobs and combatting climate change.

Minister for Environment Steve Dimopoulos today announced a $1 million investment to expand the food and organics processing capacity at Repurpose It in Epping – with the statewide rollout of four bins ahead of schedule.

The Epping facility is the largest organics processing facility in Victoria, with the capacity to process over 200,000 tonnes of organic waste each year - turning it into over one million cubic metres of high quality landscaping materials.

The $4.4 million expansion will see installation of new efficient decontamination equipment that will remove problematic items commonly found in kerbside food organics and garden organics bins – cutting the time needed to process waste by 45 per cent and creating new quality mulch and compost.

This will enable Repurpose It to meet increased demand and expand into emerging markets by delivering an additional 87,000 tonnes of quality premium soils, mulches, and composts.

The roll out of the state-wide four bin recycling systems is helping more Victorians play their part to reduce landfill while creating a steady stream of recyclable materials including food and organic waste.

So far, 31 councils have introduced new separate glass recycling services and 53 councils have adopted a kerbside FOGO service – ahead of schedule to have all 79 Victorian councils onboard by 2030.

By making recycling consistent across the state with four bins – purple for glass, green for food and garden organics, yellow for mixed recyclables and red for household rubbish - the Labor Government is supporting households to easily sort waste, recycle and reduce landfill.

These reforms are about ensuring we meet our goal of diverting 80 per cent of all material away from landfill by 2030 - while creating nearly 4,000 new jobs for Victorians and boosting our state’s economy by up to $6.7 billion.

These investments are part of the Labor Government’s $515 million transformation of the state’s waste and recycling industry – helping to reduce waste, create jobs in new industries and drive more value from our resources.

Quotes attributable to Minister for Environment Steve Dimopoulos

“We’re changing the way Victorians recycle with our container deposit scheme and the four bin system, helping us reach our goal of diverting 80 percent of waste from landfill by 2030 and keeping litter out of our environment.”

“About one third of a household rubbish bin is food waste – that’s why we’re helping innovative businesses like Repurpose It expand their operations, ensuring our organic waste is being turned into something new and useful.”