Auckland Council has announced a new initiative to roll out a food scraps collection service across mainland urban Auckland throughout 2023.

The weekly service aims to reduce waste in landfill, lower greenhouse gas emissions and improve the environment.

Each residential home within the collection area will receive a food scraps collection bin (23-litre), a kitchen caddy to collect food scraps in the kitchen, a starter set of compostable bin liners, and an information brochure on how to use the food scraps collection service. The service will not be available in rural areas.

Food scraps bin deliveries will roll out for the Hibiscus Coast from September to October, with collections starting in October.

The decision to introduce the food scraps collection service was made as food scraps are too valuable to waste and produce harmful greenhouse gases when they break down. These gases contribute to global warming, but in a food processing plant, they can be captured and used in greenhouse facilities to grow food and generate electricity.

Food scraps will be collected weekly by Auckland Council's trucks on normal rubbish days and consolidated at a facility in Papakura. The scraps will then be trucked to Ecogas food processing plant in Reporoa, where they will be processed using anaerobic digestion technology.

This process breaks down organic material in closed tanks without oxygen, producing biogas that will be converted into renewable energy and nutrient-liquid fertiliser. Any contaminants such as glass, metal, or plastic will be separated from the food scraps.

The service will raise awareness of how much food is wasted, help in better meal planning and cost-cutting, and significantly reduce household waste. It complements home composting and can handle shells, bone, meat, onion skins and citrus.

A targeted rate will be introduced for 2022/2023 for those paying property rates in Auckland areas where the service will operate, to cover the cost of the weekly collection service.

The annual rates charge for the food scraps collection service is currently $71.28 for a property, and a partial charge for "Waste management – food scraps service" will be seen in the rates for 2022/2023.

Auckland Council estimates that the food scraps collection service will divert 40,000 tonnes of waste per year, allowing this material to be processed in a way that helps the environment.