Darebin Council Trial
Turn food waste into something useful
Food scraps does not belong in landfill.
With the right system, they become nutrient-rich compost.
Exploring better food waste solutions together
Darebin City Council is currently partnering with Sustainable Solutions Now to trial The Good Sort liners across 500 households as part of a real-world food waste behaviour and recovery study.
The trial combines resident engagement, waste auditing, feedback collection, and processor assessment to better understand how recycled paper liners may support improved food waste diversion outcomes.
If your council is interested in exploring a similar trial, pilot program, or food waste engagement initiative, we’d love to hear from you.
What can go in the FOGO bin?
Not all FOGO (Food Organics and Garden Organics) systems are the same.
Different councils use different composting processors and collection systems, meaning what is accepted in one council area may not be accepted in another.
The guide below has been created specifically for Darebin City Council based on its composters current processing requirements and accepted materials.
Over time, we’ll continue adding more council-specific accepted items guides to help make sorting simpler, clearer, and less confusing for households across Australia.
Darebin FOGO:
What goes in and
what stays out
The below guide outlines what can and cannot be placed in Darebin’s FOGO (food and garden organics) bin, based on current processing requirements from Veolia and Darebin’s collection system. If there is an item you are unsure about or cannot find in the list, please get in touch and we’ll do our best to clarify and update the guide.
Please note: Batteries, e-waste, chemicals, gas bottles, and other hazardous materials should never be placed in any kerbside bin, as they can pose serious safety and fire risks to collection staff, processing facilities, and the community.
Why are compostable and biodegradable liners not accepted?
Darebin’s organics recycling processor, Veolia, does not accept plastic, biodegradable or compostable liners because they do not break down properly within suitable timeframes for its composting process and are difficult to remove and distinguish from other plastics. Paper liners, however, are accepted.
About the trial
increasing FOOD WASTE DIVERSION and reducing contamination
Why this trial matters
Food waste continues to make up around 40% of what is placed in household landfill bins, despite many homes already having access to a food organics and garden organics (FOGO) service. When food waste is sent to landfill instead of composting, valuable organic material is lost and unnecessary greenhouse gas emissions are created. Sending food waste to landfill also costs up to three times more than processing it through the food and garden organics (lime-green lid) bin system.
Through community engagement and trials, many residents express that using kitchen caddies can sometimes feel messy, inconvenient, or difficult without an effective liner solution. As compostable and biodegradable plastic liners are not accepted in Darebin’s FOGO system, this trial is exploring whether recycled paper liners could provide a practical alternative for residents.
By trialling The Good Sort liners across 500 Darebin households, the aim is to better understand resident experiences, food waste sorting behaviours, and how the bags perform within real-world composting systems.
The information gathered from the trial will help determine future options for supporting residents to recycle food waste more easily.
HOW DOES THE TRIAL WORK?
Step 1: Baseline audit
Out of the 500 selected households, a random sample of 125 households will have their general waste and FOGO bins audited to understand current food waste sorting habits.Step 2: Trial pack delivery
All 500 households will receive a trial pack of The Good Sort liners, along with information on how to use them. The pack is designed to last around 3 months. Before starting the trial, residents will also have the opportunity to complete a short survey about their current food waste and kitchen caddy habits.Step 3: Resident feedback
Around 4–6 weeks after delivery, we will return to gather feedback, hear about residents’ experiences, and answer any questions.Step 4: Final audit
Around 10 weeks after the first audit, a second kerbside audit of the general waste and FOGO bins for 125 households will have their bins audited to see whether food waste diversion has improved, such as more food waste being placed in the FOGO bin instead of landfill, or a reduction in the use of compostable and biodegradable liners, which are not accepted with Darebin’s composter.
Throughout the trial
Residents will be able to join a dedicated Facebook community group to ask questions, share feedback, hear updates, and connect with other households participating in the trial.
Veolia, Darebin’s composter, will assess incoming material containing the bags from the trial areas to understand how the liners break down in the composting process.
Share your feedback
As a Darebin FOGO trial participant, your feedback will help shape and improve future waste and composting programs.
Participants who complete the survey provided in your welcome pack will enter a draw to win a $100 voucher.
Once you’ve started using your paper liner and service, we’d love to hear about your experience. We will check in with you again in June to see how the trial has been going, and how your experience using the liners has been.
Your participation matters
By using your liner correctly, you’re helping improve future waste systems and reduce contamination.
If you have any further questions regarding the Darebin Trial, please contact Darebin Council customer service at
(03)84700 8888 for any questions or go to their website www.darebin.vic.gov.au/FOGO-paper-liner
