In the 2019/2020 financial year, Exeter City Council collected 26,417 tonnes of  non recyclable household waste. (1) Food waste makes up roughly 19% of general waste, (2) suggesting the city creates roughly 5,019 tonnes of food waste per year; 13 tonnes per day (or roughly 100g per person daily). Other district councils in Devon send their food waste to be composted in anaerobic digestion plants, creating fertiliser and also electricity by burning the biogas generated. (3) In Exeter, food waste goes into the general waste bin, for incineration, creating harmful emissions. (4) The current Labour Council said in their manifesto they would start a food waste collection (5) and the discussions have been ongoing since 2016. (6) Exeter Friends of The Earth are very supportive of this proposed change, and whilst plans have been delayed due to the pandemic, (7) we need our city council to take decisive action, and go ahead with their plans to start a food waste collection - it’s a much needed step to help the community in our shared battle against the climate crisis.

1 https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/env18-local-authority-collected-waste-annual-results-tables

2 https://www.cheaperwaste.co.uk/blog/food-waste-the-complete-2020-guide/#:~:text=In%20the%20US%20and%20UK,quickly%20and%20causes%20methane%20gas.https://www.devonlive.com/news/devon-news/devon-councillor-blasts-students-over-5899837

3 https://www.devon.gov.uk/wasteandrecycling/household-collections/food-waste-recycling-and-collections/

4 https://www.c40knowledgehub.org/s/article/Why-solid-waste-incineration-is-not-the-answer-to-your-city-s-waste-problem?language=en_US

5 https://www.exeter-labour.org.uk/blog/2021/03/26/532/

6 https://exeter.greenparty.org.uk/news/2016/02/09/cutting-council-waste/

7 https://www.devonlive.com/news/devon-news/major-exeter-rubbish-collection-changes-5688249