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Caerphilly in ‘Mash for Cash’ caddy campaign

Caerphilly county borough council in Wales has announced an initiative which will give residents the chance to win £500 towards their energy bills in return for putting their food waste caddy out for collection each week.

Caerphilly residents can win a prize for putting out their food waste

The “Mash for Cash” campaign aims to increase the number of residents recycling their food waste, with current participation levels currently around 40% throughout the borough. In turn, the local authority said it hopes that a resulting increase in food waste recycling would lead to a decline in the amounts of refuse disposal, boosting the overall recycling rates as well as supporting the Councils commitment to reducing the emissions of greenhouse gases and thereby contributing to the national and global goals for decarbonisation.

The initiative which launched on 7 March – and run throughout 2022 – will see houses monitored with one food recycling participant chosen at random each month, with each winner receiving £500.

The authority said that with average annual energy bills due to rise by £693 in April, the prize money could help relieve residents of the majority of the increase, “although the cash could be used however the winner sees fit”.

Anaerobic digestion

Caerphilly County Borough Council currently receive 50p per tonne for anaerobic digestion material collected, meaning the scheme can be self-sustaining as the increased tonnage of food waste collected will generate the winnings each month.

Cllr Philippa Marsden, the council’s leader, said “I am thrilled to announce this initiative, which we believe is the first of its kind. With the current rise in energy bills, we are very excited to be able to redistribute public funding back into the community in this way with the hope of increasing our current levels of food waste recycling at the same time.”

Our overall recycling performance figures are affected by the relatively low levels of organic waste recycled

– Councillor Nigel George, Caerphilly CBC

Councillor Nigel George, cabinet member for waste, public protection & street scene adds: “We are very excited to be able to offer this initiative to our residents.

“Caerphilly county borough council currently stands at number three in the national league table [Wales] for recyclable materials collected at the kerbside each week (with participation levels at around 80%). However, our overall recycling performance figures are affected by the relatively low levels of organic waste recycled, in particular, the food waste collection service, where participation levels are low.

“We are confident that this initiative will increase food waste recycling participation and boost recycling figures as a whole”.

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