Welcome to the Australian Local Food System Policy Database. This is a collection of policies from New South Wales (NSW) and Victorian local governments that relate to healthy, sustainable, and equitable food systems.
For further information about using the database and how it was created see How to use the database. You can search the database by using the fields below. Domain refers to eight broad categories under which various topics are situated. The domains and topics are based on a framework of recommendations for local government action on creating a healthy, sustainable, and equitable food system (also located on the ‘How to use the database’ page linked above).
To cite the database: Reeve B, Carrad A, Rose N, Charlton K & Aguirre-Bielschowsky I (2021) Australian Local Food System Policy Database. Available at: https://law-food-systems.sydney.edu.au/policy-database (access date).
Suggested search terms
Hold Ctrl to select multiple terms. Using ‘any words’ functions as an “OR” search. Using ‘all words’ functions as and “AND” search.
Search Criteria:
| Document title | Relevant text in the policy | Domain | Topic | State | Local Government name | Council type |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Waste Management Strategy | Apply for WLRM Love Food Hate Waste funding to educate residents on waste avoidance. | Health and Wellbeing | Education/events on food system issues | NSW | Coonamble | Regional |
| Waste Management Strategy | Apply for WLRM Love Food Hate Waste funding to educate residents on waste avoidance. | Food Waste | Food losses and food waste | NSW | Coonamble | Regional |
| WASTE MANAGEMENT STRATEGY | The wonderful produce of Bass Coast can be found at a number of farmers markets that are hosted across the Shire and Gippsland region making Bass Coast a diverse and robust economy | Economic Development | Public food markets and distributors | Victoria | Bass Coast | Regional |
| Waste Management Strategy | As part of International Compost Week 2015 Council ran a ‘My Compost Rules’ competition on its facebook page. | Health and Wellbeing | Education/events on food system issues | Victoria | Mitchell | Regional |
| Waste Management Strategy 2015-2020 | Recommendation 7: Address options for improving management of organic waste. This involves Council: – Providing residents with access to discounted compost bins and worm farms and partnering with organisations and community groups who run workshops related to home composting | Health and Wellbeing | Education/events on food system issues | Victoria | Macedon Ranges | Regional |
| Waste Management Strategy 2015-2020 | Improving containment facilities for receiving and mulching green waste at transfer stations, and identifying a means for processing remnant materials (possibly with manure waste from sales yards to produce a soil conditioner) | Sustainability and Environment | Sustainable local food production | Victoria | Macedon Ranges | Regional |
| Waste Management Strategy 2015-2020 | Recommendation 7: Address options for improving management of organic waste. This involves Council: – Providing residents with access to discounted compost bins and worm farms and partnering with organisations and community groups who run workshops related to home composting | Sustainability and Environment | Home and community gardening | Victoria | Macedon Ranges | Regional |
| Waste Management Strategy 2015-2020 | Recommendation 12: Survey local organisations and trader groups to identify resource use options to support increased reuse of valuable material streams, such as organic material from sales yards and food outlets. Use the findings to consider business cases for potential market | Food Waste | Food losses and food waste | Victoria | Macedon Ranges | Regional |
| Waste Management Strategy 2015-2020 | Recommendation 7: Address options for improving management of organic waste. This involves Council: – Providing residents with access to discounted compost bins and worm farms and partnering with organisations and community groups who run workshops related to home composting – Improving containment facilities for receiving and mulching green waste at transfer stations, and identifying a means for processing remnant materials (possibly with manure waste from sales yards to produce a soil conditioner) | Food Waste | Food losses and food waste | Victoria | Macedon Ranges | Regional |
| Waste Management Strategy 2017-2030 | Develop and implement a comprehensive organics behaviour change program for the Food and Garden Organics Collection (FOGO) system | Health and Wellbeing | Education/events on food system issues | NSW | Randwick | Metropolitan |
| Waste Management Strategy 2017-2030 | Update and expand education programs to avoid waste, in particular single use soft plastics and utensils | Health and Wellbeing | Education/events on food system issues | NSW | Randwick | Metropolitan |
| Waste Management Strategy 2017-2030 | Case study 1 Food waste recycling Council is operating a Food Waste collection trial with funding from the NSW EPA Waste Less Recycle More grant. The trial, has been running since 2013, involves approximately 4000 selected units as well as some that requested to participate. Residents are given kitchen benchtop bins (caddies) and compostable bin liner bags to put food waste in. When the liner bags are full, residents drop the bags into the Council provided bins with maroon lids. The collected food waste is sent to EarthPower Technologies – a small-scale anaerobic codigestion plant at Camellia in Western Sydney. The facility produces gas which is used to generate electricity and the remaining sludge is dried and pelletised and used as fertiliser in industrial processes. In 2016/17 the average amount of food waste collected and recycled per month through this trial is approximately five (5) tonnes. Participating householders are supported with ongoing engagement and information including with owners corporations, body corporates, strata managers and cleaners. Council conducted a broad community survey to gauge level of support for this type of service in 2014, including surveying trial participants to measure their experience of the service. Council received more than 8,000 responses to the survey. The results indicated enthusiasm for food waste recycling, with 85% of those not participating in the trial supporting the rollout of the service to all households and 90 % of trial participants supported it with suggestions for future improvements to ensure success. The strategy includes an opt-in service for residents in the action plan. | Food Waste | Food losses and food waste | NSW | Randwick | Metropolitan |
| Waste Management Strategy 2017-2030 | Develop and implement a comprehensive organics behaviour change program for the Food and Garden Organics Collection (FOGO) system | Food Waste | Food losses and food waste | NSW | Randwick | Metropolitan |
| Waste Management Strategy 2017-2030 | Introduce opt-in foodwaste collection in all multi-unit dwellings | Food Waste | Food losses and food waste | NSW | Randwick | Metropolitan |
| Waste Management Strategy 2017-2030 | Investigate collection and processing options for Food and Garden Organics. | Food Waste | Food losses and food waste | NSW | Randwick | Metropolitan |
| Waste Management Strategy 2017-2030 | To explore the potential for food waste recovery, Council implemented a food waste collection trial in multi unit dwellings, for more information see case study 1- Food waste trial. | Food Waste | Food losses and food waste | NSW | Randwick | Metropolitan |
| Waste Management Strategy 2017-2030 | Update and expand education programs to avoid waste, in particular single use soft plastics and utensils | Food Waste | Food losses and food waste | NSW | Randwick | Metropolitan |
| Waste Management Strategy 2018-2023 | From recent audits of the general waste bin, people are still throwing out food in containers/packaging, rather than removing the food from the container and separating into the correct bin. This will be addressed in Council’s waste education strategy. | Health and Wellbeing | Education/events on food system issues | Victoria | Wangaratta | Regional |
| Waste Management Strategy 2018-2023 | Free drop off of empty farming chemicals containers | Sustainability and Environment | Sustainable local food production | Victoria | Wangaratta | Regional |
| Waste Management Strategy 2018-2023 | Investigate communal compost bins for rural communities wanting to divert their food waste. | Sustainability and Environment | Home and community gardening | Victoria | Wangaratta | Regional |
| Waste Management Strategy 2018-2023 | Bowser Organics Processing Facility – soon to be constructed Council has recently gained EPA works approval to construct a food and garden organics processing facility. The aim of this project is to support further diversion of food and garden organics within the municipality and North East region by offering a financially viable processing solution. The plant will comprise of seven bunkers with the capacity of 425 cubic metres per cell. The process will involve using a covered aerated static pile composting (ASP) technology which incorporates the use of expanded polytrafluoroethylene covers for process enhancement and emissions control. The process can handle a range of organic feedstock materials, with the main inputs to this system including kitchen, garden and food wastes from commercial businesses. This is the typical organic waste that is currently collected with the Council’s food and garden organics kerbside collection. The facility will have capacity to process up to 12,000 tonnes of organics material a year. After the plant is commissioned it is anticipated that the facility will process 3,500 tonnes of organic material from Wangaratta's kerbside food and garden organics waste collection, as well as an additional 500 tonnes from the transfer station. This will continue to rise as other nearby councils such as Alpine and Mansfield begin a food and organics waste collection and contracts end with current providers. | Food Waste | Food losses and food waste | Victoria | Wangaratta | Regional |
| Waste Management Strategy 2018-2023 | Council provides a kerbside collection service of general waste, recycling and food and garden organics waste (urban only) to commercial businesses within the municipality. Commercial businesses are able to choose what bin sizes they require, the frequency of collection and the number of bins. General waste and recycling services are compulsory for all businesses however, businesses can seek an exemption if they can prove they have another service in place. Food and garden organics is also compulsory for any registered food premises in urban Wangaratta, once again exemptions can apply if an alternative system is in place. | Food Waste | Food losses and food waste | Victoria | Wangaratta | Regional |
| Waste Management Strategy 2018-2023 | Council provides internal kerbside collection services of general waste and food and garden organics waste | Food Waste | Food losses and food waste | Victoria | Wangaratta | Regional |
| Waste Management Strategy 2018-2023 | Currently Wangaratta is the only township with organic waste collection. The construction of a local organics processing plant will enable kerbside food and garden organics waste collections to be rolled out to nearby Rural Townships of Milawa, Oxley and Glenrowan. Target to recover an additional 500 tonnes of food and garden organics from the municipal waste stream. | Food Waste | Food losses and food waste | Victoria | Wangaratta | Regional |
| Waste Management Strategy 2018-2023 | Divert polystyrene from landfill by collecting it at the transfer station. | Food Waste | Food losses and food waste | Victoria | Wangaratta | Regional |
| Waste Management Strategy 2018-2023 | Food and Garden Organics 240L 140L | Food Waste | Food losses and food waste | Victoria | Wangaratta | Regional |
| Waste Management Strategy 2018-2023 | Food and garden waste Since the introduction of the food and garden waste bin, Council has reduced 3,500 tonnes of organics entering the landfill annually. The success of this new bin can be measured by residents maintaining low contamination rates (0.5-0.7%). As part of this new system Council implemented a four strike contamination policy for both the organics and recycling bin. This policy gives the resident four chances to rectify behaviour before their bin is taken away, and the charge remaining on the rates. | Food Waste | Food losses and food waste | Victoria | Wangaratta | Regional |
| Waste Management Strategy 2018-2023 | From recent audits of the general waste bin, people are still throwing out food in containers/packaging, rather than removing the food from the container and separating into the correct bin. This will be addressed in Council’s waste education strategy. | Food Waste | Food losses and food waste | Victoria | Wangaratta | Regional |
| Waste Management Strategy 2018-2023 | Further it laid the foundation for the Rural City of Wangaratta to develop a local organics processing plant, on-site works to build the plant have already started and the plant is on track to be commissioned in late 2018. | Food Waste | Food losses and food waste | Victoria | Wangaratta | Regional |
| Waste Management Strategy 2018-2023 | improvements in utilisation of food and garden waste bins | Food Waste | Food losses and food waste | Victoria | Wangaratta | Regional |