The NSW Environment Protection Authority has awarded $198,000 in grant funding to the Better Business Partnership (BBP).

These funds are provided under the Business Food Waste Partnership Grants program. With the grant, BBP will provide 300 businesses support to reduce food waste going to landfill. The Better Business Partnership is a joint initiative with Ku-ring-gai, North Sydney, and Willoughby Councils, alongside Sydney Water and the NSW Government’s Environmental Trust.

The aim of the BBP program is to reduce wastage going to landfill by 40 per cent by 2027. To achieve this goal, Better Business will work with businesses to educate them on how to categorise and separate their food waste from general waste and identify solutions to possible roadblocks preventing proper waste removal strategies.

‘Food waste gives off a harmful methane gas which is 30 times more potent than greenhouse gas warming the planet,’ explains Amanda Choy, BBP Program Coordinator. ‘Part of our program is about getting people to sign up and have a conversation: What sort of food waste do you generate?’

There are four types of food waste: spoiled food, preparation waste, plate waste, and food that can be rescued. Through educational webinars and face-to-face workshops that allow for networking and hands-on experiences, BBP want to empower people and businesses to feel better about making a difference in their workplace, save the environment, and reduce the cost of their regular waste removal. In Australia, around 20% of all waste is food waste, which amounts to about $36 billion in waste fees.

In the recruitment phase, BBP are searching for businesses such as childcare centres, aged care facilities, shopping centres, cafes and restaurants, food outlets, caterers, and any business that produces food waste. Though BBP is a collaboration with Ku-ring-gai, Willoughby, and North Sydney, businesses in the surrounding areas like Hornsby, Lane Cove, Mosman, the Northern Beaches, Ryde, and others are welcome to apply.

‘We will be using the EPA’s Bin Trim Program to access on site equipment to dehydrate food waste… take out the moisture, the weight and the smelliness,’ says Amanda. ‘That can either be applied to gardens for composting or taken away for further processing.’

The grant funding is against a backdrop of the EPA and the NSW Government introducing FOGO (Food Organics Garden Organics) recovery mandates in 2025. Large businesses and institutions will be required to have a source-separated food organics collection from July 2025. Councils will be required to provide NSW households with source-separated food organics collection from July 2030.

For more information and to apply, visit bbp.org.au/food-waste/