A cafe makes food waste all day: coffee grounds from every shot, milk that has turned, fruit peels, the end of the loaf, what comes back on a plate. Most of it ends up in the general waste bin. A weekly food waste collection gives it somewhere else to go, and it does not take much room or much training.
What a week looks like
You get a kitchen caddy, certified compostable liners, signage for the kitchen and a 120L bin. The caddy lives on the bench. When it is full, the liner goes into the 120L bin out the back. We collect that bin on the same day every week, and we set the day when the service starts.
That is the whole routine. There is no sorting at the end of the day and no separate trip for you to make.
What goes in, and what stays out
Food goes in. Packaging does not.
- In: fruit and vegetable peels, coffee grounds, food left on plates, bread, dairy, and meat and bones.
- Out: packaging, plastic, glass, cans, and any liner that is not certified compostable.
The liners matter. We use liners certified to AS 4736, the Australian standard for compostable plastics, so that the whole bag can be composted with the food. A regular plastic bag spoils a bin, because it cannot be composted.
What it costs
The price is $45 a bin a week, ex GST, plus a fuel levy of 9.93% that appears as its own line on the invoice. Each weekly lift covers up to 20kg. Above that, it is 44c per kg. Billing is monthly by default, and annual billing is available on request. There is a contract, and you can cancel with notice.
Wet food waste is heavy, so how close you get to 20kg depends on your volume. If you are unsure, ask us when you enquire and we will talk it through before you sign up.
Space, smell and staff
A few habits keep it easy:
- Empty the caddy into the bin at close, rather than letting it sit overnight.
- Keep the lid of the 120L bin shut, and keep the bin in the shade if you can.
- Put the signage where the team can see it, next to the caddy.
- Walk new staff through the in and out lists in their first shift.
These are common-sense habits rather than rules. If space out the back is tight, mention it when you enquire.
Do the NSW rules apply to a cafe?
NSW now requires some businesses to separate food waste, and the requirement widens in steps. It depends on how much general waste your site puts out each week, counted by the total size of your general waste bins:
- From 1 July 2026: 3,960L a week
- From 1 July 2028: 1,980L a week
- From 1 July 2030: 720L a week, which is three 240L wheelie bins
A single cafe with a few bins may sit below the first two thresholds today, but it is worth counting yours rather than guessing, and the 2030 threshold is low. The NSW EPA publishes the rules at epa.nsw.gov.au, and we have a plain-English version on our NSW food waste rules page. This is general information, not legal advice.
Some sites start a collection before the rules reach them. It keeps food waste out of the general bin, and it is easier to settle into a routine early than to change one in a hurry.
Getting started
Tell us your address and how many bins you have now, and we will confirm your collection day and send the kit. You can read the full details, including the questions people ask most, on our weekly food waste collection page, or start a collection directly.
Rules and prices checked 10 October 2026.