Date published: 2026-03-16 | Category: Delivering for local residents, Tackling the climate and ecological emergency, Waste and Recycling
One hundred per cent of residents in B&NES can now recycle food waste with Bath & North East Somerset Council’s new solution for more than 350 flats in central Bath which do not have space to store large containers.
People living in around 150 flats in the city centre are being provided with a 5-litre kitchen caddy they can use to transfer food waste into new on-street communal food bins.
A further 200 flats will also receive a caddy they can present for collection alongside their green recycling sacks.
The new measures will mean the council offers food waste collections to every home in the district, ahead of the Government deadline in March requiring councils to meet its new Simpler Recycling requirements.
The council has this week been recognised by Sustain for demonstrating excellent support for initiatives to reduce and reuse food waste. The alliance for better food and farming’s benchmarking exercise in the South West showed that the council’s actions have contributed to a 25% reduction in residual waste since 2017 and a 60.5% household recycling rate in 2024/25.
Councillor Mark Elliott, Deputy Council Leader and Cabinet Member for Resources, said “This is a really positive step for residents and for our environment. Ensuring every home in B&NES can recycle food waste puts us ahead of national requirements and supports the ambition set out in our Towards Zero Waste strategy to reduce waste and increase recycling. These improvements mean more materials will be reused to generate green energy and benefit local farmland.”
Food waste collected in Bath and North East Somerset is sent to the Codford Biogas plant, where it is processed into renewable energy and high‑quality biofertiliser used on local farmland.
The on-street communal food bins will be situated next to existing general litter bins at Broad Street, Cheap Street, Westgate Street and Bridewell Lane. They can be opened using the lid or a foot pedal and will be cleaned regularly.
Find out about food waste recycling in B&NES.