Tackling food waste: Pickling & fermenting workshops success
Our pickling and fermenting workshops with award-winning low-waste restaurant Samesyn 2.0 proved incredibly popular! The workshops sold out in record time and generated long waitlists.
Graham, owner of Samesyn 2.0 gave Surf Coast locals an introduction into food preserving. He reminded us to keep it simple - noting that our grandparents regularly used these techniques to extend the life of foods before fridges were commonplace.
Elsie and Erica from Council's Circular Economy team shared the latest waste audit results, showing that 52% of the average landfill bin could have been sorted and diverted from landfill. For example, properly sorting and using FOGO bins could almost halve what the community sends to landfill. They also highlighted additional food-waste facts, including:
- One third of food produced globally is wasted
- Around 70% of all food binned is perfectly edible
- Almost two thirds of Australian’s don’t know the difference between best before and use-by dates
Pickling and fermenting is one way to help reduce food waste by preserving and extending the life of vegetables and other food items.
No bin - no worries!
Participants were also inspired to hear how Samesyn 2.0 operates without a landfill waste bin – actively reducing food waste by using ingredients that others might typically discard, and directing all profits to local charity Feed Me Surf Coast to support the community and keep food out of landfill.
Workshop participants left inspired and ready to try pickling and fermenting and take other actions to reduce waste. Participants reported that:
- 100% said that they now feel confident in taking practical steps at home to reduce food waste.
- 100% said they feel more confident sorting their waste into the 4 bin system
Participants shared positive feedback saying:
“This was the most amazing workshop - I would pay to go to this in the future. Graham was so informative and the dialogue between Elsie and Graham just flowed and was so entertaining. Well done Surf Coast!!
“Excellent and really well run. I would highly recommend and would even attend again.”
These workshops are part of Council’s efforts to reduce food waste, with the goal to halve the amount of organics in landfill bins by 2030 by encouraging food waste reduction and increasing the use of FOGO bins.
This workshop was funded by Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action (DEECA) Kerbside Reform Grant.
Other handy waste tips:
Local options for hard to recycle items
The Circular Economy team has compiled a list of local recycling programs (for hard to recycle items that can’t go in your yellow-lid recycling bin). For example, Council offers free recycling programs for soft plastics, polystyrene and paint.
Check out these and many more recycling options here: Can I recycle that?
Surf Coast Rubbish and Recycling App (SCRRApp)
The Council SCRRApp is a handy way to check what goes in each bin (and also has bin collection reminders). For example, Tetrapaks were previously not accepted in the yellow recycle bin, but our contractor now accepts them, so they can go in the recycling bin!
Some other examples that people often confuse are tea bags, pet poo and paper towel - these items cannot go in your lime-green lid FOGO bin and should instead go in your red-lid landfill bin. Checking the SCRRApp regularly helps to maximise your recycling efforts. You can also sign up to our “Good Sort” newsletter to stay up to date on local waste news.
Related Information