Ingenia Gardens Coffs Harbour has cut the amount of food wasted each week by half, preventing almost half a tonne of organic food waste from ending up in the bin each year.

The community took part in the free ‘Your Business Is Food’ program and have put steps in place to reduce food waste, save money, improve service delivery and reduce their environmental impact.

The program is being delivered in the area thanks to a partnership between the NSW Government’s Love Food Hate Waste program and MidWaste, which is made up of member Councils including Coffs Harbour City Council. Residents fighting food
waste in Coffs Harbour Sandra Luke, Community Manager of Ingenia Gardens Coffs Harbour, said the kitchen staff made simple changes that resulted in significant savings.

“We have cut our food waste by 49% or 8.5kg each week and reduced our spoilage and tray waste to zero. This adds up to
an annual cost saving of $1780,” Ms Luke said. “We’re also now capturing our food scraps such as peelings, skins and outer leaves in a compost bin so we have a great mulch to use on our gardens around the community.”

MidWaste Coordinator Ali Bigg said Ingenia Gardens is playing their part to help solve the climate crisis, as eliminating food waste has the potential to save 4.4 million tonnes of carbon dioxide a year – equivalent to taking one in four cars off the road.

This project is supported by the NSW Environment Protection Authority as part of the Waste Less Recycle More initiative, funded from the waste levy.