Here’s where the first food waste collections will happen in West Sussex

Mid Sussex has been chosen for the pilot, which will see around 3,000 households across three areas taking part.

They will start receiving a weekly food waste collection service, while absorbent hygiene products will also be collected separately if requested.

The trial was signed off by Mid Sussex District Council cabinet members earlier this month and is set to start in April.

The project is being funded and led by West Sussex County Council and if successful could be rolled out to other areas subject to the agreement of individual district and boroughs.

Deborah Urquhart, the county council’s cabinet member for environment, said: “This is the first trial of its type to be considered in West Sussex. Our aim would be to gain valuable feedback from residents, enabling a full review before potentially re-shaping and enhancing rubbish and recycling collections for the future.”

As part of the trial, general household waste bins would be collected once every three weeks instead of once a fortnight.

John Belsey, MSDC’s cabinet member for environment and service delivery, said: “Food waste has a significant negative impact on our environment and it is estimated that recycling all food waste nationally would have the same environmental benefit as taking one in four cars off the UK’s roads.

“When food waste is collected separately, an anaerobic digester can use the gas that is produced when the food breaks down to generate energy and turn the left-over material into a soil fertiliser.

“With weekly food waste and absorbent hygiene product collections, general rubbish bins will be much less full.”

Back in 2018 the Government’s resources and waste strategy included plans to consult on a nationwide rollout of food waste collections.

In the meantime, West Sussex Waste Partnership has been running an awareness campaign to help residents reduce the amount of food they throw away.

Analysis suggests that 70 per cent of food waste is avoidable and the partnership’s strategy is to encourage people to try and prevent it from being wasted in the first place.

The website says: “We can all be guilty of buying too much food and letting it fester in the fridge or cupboard but most of us don’t realise how much food we actually waste every day.

“From uneaten leftovers that we simply throw in the bin to spoiled foods we’ve left in the fridge, around 40 per cent of the rubbish in an average West Sussex bin is made up of food waste.”

For advice on reducing food waste visit the partnership’s website.