Canberra Delays Food and Garden Waste Collection

By Caitlin Maloney

Topic: Recycling and Waste

Saturday, 1 August 2026, at 3:31 pm

A food and garden waste collection program has been in place for over 5,000 households in some Canberra suburbs since 2021.

In short:

A food waste recycling program in Canberra has been delayed again.

The government aims to start collecting food and garden waste by 2030.

What's next?

The federal government wants all households to have food and garden waste collection by 2030.

The program to turn food and garden waste into compost has been delayed again.

The collection was first planned for 2023, but it was delayed to 2024, then 2026, and now 2028.

In 2025, the plan was delayed again until 2028.

The government is now planning to start the collection by 2030.

The minister said the program will be done in two stages.

This is a big project for the city.

The leader of the ACT Greens is unhappy about the delay.

She said the delay shows the government does not care about climate change.

Many people in Canberra want to recycle their food waste.

The leader of the ACT Greens said she has not seen a good reason for the delay.

People often ask when they can start recycling their food waste.

The technology for recycling food waste is not new.

Canberra is behind other cities in recycling food waste.

People in Canberra ask when they can start recycling their food waste.

The program was delayed because a new facility is needed.

Before the program can start, a new facility must be built to process waste.

Households in the program get a special bin and bags to store their food waste.

The minister said the program will be done in two stages.

The government will choose a company to build the new facility.

Some people in Canberra already have the food and garden waste collection.

A pilot program has been running for over 6,000 households since 2021.

The minister said people like the pilot program.

The minister said attitudes towards the program have improved.

The program helps households that have trouble with their current waste collection.

As of September 2025, 38% of Australians had access to food and garden waste collection.

The government wants all households to have access to the collection by 2030.

This is a problem that people can help solve in their kitchens.

Over 5,000 homes in some suburbs have had the food and garden waste collection since 2021.

Waste accounts for 6% of Canberra's emissions.

The delay might affect Canberra's goal to be net zero by 2045.

Food waste produces emissions for 20 years after it goes to landfill.

The ACT Greens will keep pushing the government to start the program.

Our waste emissions are increasing, and climate change is a problem.

People want to solve the problem of food waste in their kitchens.

People really want this solution.

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