Christmas

If you are planning to go to the recycling centre over Christmas, you will need to Book a slot 

Please be aware that last slot is 3.50pm and gates close at 4.00pm

We have four option available for recycling your real Christmas tree:

• Take your tree to our recycling centre at Torbay Waste & Recycling Centre
• Take your tree to one of our two collection points at the Town Hall Carpark, Torquay and Brixham College Ranscombe Road, Brixham between 9.30am to 12.30pm on:
  • Saturday 6th January 2024
  • Saturday 13th January 2024
• If you have a garden waste subscription, leave your tree either beside or, if it fits, inside  your garden waste bin
• This year we have joined forces with Rowcroft Hospice and, in return for a small donation, we will come and collect your tree from your home, Donate to Rowcroft for your Christmas Tree collection

Please note that garden waste collections are paused from 15th  December 2023 to 15th January 2024

You can put your real Christmas in or beside your brown bin for Collection once garden waste collections resume. 

If you would like a garden waste subscription, you can Sign up Here

Wrapping paper accepted in the Blue Bag:

1. If it passes the scrunch test - see video above.

2. Is not foil-based

3. No glitter or embellishment

Accepted in box with Orange sticker (cardboard and glass):

Brown wrapping paper, including printed brown wrapping paper

General Waste:

All other

Latest research shows that food waste costs a four-person household in the UK around £1,000 per year in food bought, but not eaten. Of the 6.4 million tonnes of food and drink thrown away last year, a huge 4.7 million tonnes could have been eaten.

UK households throw away 300,000t of meat and fish a year, costing £3.2 billion.

Top tips for preventing food waste this Christmas:

Turkey

Poultry is in the top 10 most wasted foods in the UK, at number six. Most poultry waste is chicken but at Christmas it’s all about turkey, and the problem is exactly the same. So, it’s important to use up those leftovers.

Any kind of leftovers (apart from rice, which is strictly 24 hours) can be stored in the fridge for up to two days. Also, freezing leftover cooked meat is perfectly safe as long as it is done as soon as possible.

There are only two safe ways to defrost (raw or cooked meat/poultry): in the fridge or using the microwave on the defrost setting directly before cooking

The rule to remember is to only re-heat once.

Both Love Food Hate Waste and the Food Standards Agency have some great advice about defrosting and cooking turkey and using up the leftovers in delicious dishes:

https://www.food.gov.uk/safety-hygiene/christmas-food-hygiene

https://www.lovefoodhatewaste.com/article/store-chicken-and-turkey-right-way

Potatoes

The humble potato is the most wasted food in the UK.Potatoes need to be stored in the fridge (new FSA advice). They can be parboiled and frozen to get ahead of the Christmas rush. It’s best to ‘open freeze’ on a tray and then transfer to an airtight container. This is so they don’t all stick together and you can take out as many as you need when you come to roast them – straight from the freezer.

Veg - Brussel sprouts, cabbage, carrots

Fresh vegetables and salad is in the most wasted food group in the UK. Swapping these high waste fresh foods for frozen options (’swaptions’) helps to reduce food waste as frozen vegetables can be cooked from frozen.

Check out more useful links here:

https://www.lovefoodhatewaste.com/blog/best-recipes-christmas-leftovers

http://www.lovefoodhatewaste.com/foods-and-recipes/food-portion-calculator-your-guide-perfect-portion-sizes

And for all that food waste that just can’t be used, please be sure to use one of our food caddies; using a process called anaerobic digestion, we are able to produce biogas from your food waste. We harness this biogas to create valuable energy which can then be used for heating, cooking and transportation.

Your kitchen food caddy can be lined with any type of plastic bag including carrier bags, sandwich bags, pedal bin liners and bread bags.  Alternatively, you can use newspaper or compostable bags to line your caddy.  All liners, whether plastic, paper or compostable, are then mechanically separated from the food waste and disposed of.

What goes into your food caddy:

All cooked and uncooked food waste can be recycled in your food waste bin, including the following:

• Bones or carcasses, including chicken carcasses
• Bread, pasta, rice and cereals
• Cheese and dairy products
• Fruit and vegetables and peelings
• Meat and fish
• Teabags and coffee grounds

X No plastic food wrapping or packaging

X No cardboard

X No garden waste or cut flowers

X No oils or liquids

Do you need to order one?  Simply call 01803 701310 or via Report It

Find more Tips at Recycle Devon