Food Scraps Support

Educating our communities

Support is available to help educate friends, whānau and community about the rukenga kai (food scraps) collection service.

There are two options available:

Receive a grant to host your own event
Become a neighbourhood Bin Ambassador

Host your own event

Host an event that brings neighbours or community together, such as a street bbq, shared morning tea, coffee group or other get together. Your event must include discussion about the food scraps collection service. Grants can also be used to assist with the cost of a translator.

Important to know

You can apply for up to $500 to support an event. There is a limit of $500 for any one organisation. Payment will be made after the event is held, once the applicant has completed a short evaluation about the activity, how many people were involved and what the money was spent on. Receipts, feedback and photos from the participants are also requested. Events should follow zero waste principles, be smoke-free and grant money cannot be used for alcohol.

APPLY now

*Please allow at least two weeks for us to process your application.*

Become a Bin Ambassador

You can make a big difference to the food scraps collection service by sharing your support for it with those living close by.

Being a Bin Ambassador is a simple and effective role that involves calling on your neighbours on the afternoon or evening before your local collection, to make sure they’re ready.

For six weeks, you’ll aim to encourage 8 -10 of your neighbours – from your street, row of units or apartment block – to use the food scraps collection service successfully each week.

We offer a $300 koha for this valuable mahi.

apply now

*Please allow at least two weeks for us to process your application.*

FOOD SCRAPS COLLECTION

EcoMatters is partnering with Auckland Council to support people using the rukenga kai (food scraps) collection service across Tāmaki Makaurau.

Aucklanders can now turn their rukenga kai (food scraps) into clean energy and fertiliser at a special plant in the Waikato, for the growing of more kai. Learn more about what happens to your food scraps in this short video.

This is an essential service designed to drastically reduce more than 110kg of food waste going to landfill from each Aucklander, every year.

COMPLEMENT WITH COMPOST

For those who can, composting is a great way to increase your positive impact on our whenua. There are food scraps that can’t go into your compost and, now, you’ll be able to put them into your food scraps bin for collection on bin day.

EXTRA RESOURCES

You can find out more from council’s website right here and if you’re really keen to get waste-wise, you can access a free, user friendly e-learning course too.