Pumpkin recycling scheme used for soil conditioner for Kent farmers
Three recycling sites have been set up in Sheerness, Faversham and Sittingbourne until Wednesday 5 November
Pumpkin recycling sites have been set up across Swale borough for locals to dispose of their Halloween jack-o-lanterns that don’t fit in their food waste caddies.
Dedicated pumpkin wheelie bins will be located in Central car park in Faversham, Rose Street car park in Sheerness and Central Avenue car park in Sittingbourne from Monday 27 October until Wednesday 5 November.
The pumpkins will be collected by waste contractor Suez and taken to the Countrystyle composting facility in Ridham to be turned into soil conditioner for local farmers.
The council has said pumpkins can also be cut up and placed inside your food waste caddy, to be collected on your weekly collection day.
Cllr Dolley Wooster, chair of the Environment and Climate Change Committee, said:
“Pumpkin carving is great fun for the whole family and is an important part of many people’s Halloween festivities, but what happens to the pumpkins once we’ve had our fun?
“We want to make sure the borough’s discarded pumpkins can have a second chance at life as soil conditioners, helping farmers grow the food we eat.
“While this may seem obvious to most, please don’t put your pumpkins, or any food, in your recycling - food waste is our worst contaminator and often leads to whole loads of recycling being burnt.
“We know the pumpkins might not all fit in your food waste caddies, so help us keep the borough clean and reuse waste by dropping off your pumpkins into our recycling scheme.”
The pumpkin recycling sites will be in:
- Central Car Park, Leslie Smith Dr, Faversham ME13 8PW
- Central Avenue Car Park, Central Ave, Sittingbourne ME10 9GY
- Rose Street Car Park, Rose St, Sheerness ME12 1AJ
If you find the bins full, the council are asking to get in touch.
You can find out more about food waste recycling in Swale on the council’s waste campaign page.