Find my bin day
Put your food and garden bin out by 6 am on your collection day. Collections happen on the same day each week, including public holidays. You must return the bins to your property within 24 hours after collection.
Waste calendars
You can also download our waste calendars and view waste maps and zones of Knox.
How to use your kitchen caddy
To use your kitchen caddy, you can either:
- line it with a lime green compostable caddy liner (AS4736)
- use newspaper or paper towel (must be 100% paper)
- use no liner at all.
When your caddy is full, empty it into your food and garden bin.
For more information about using your caddy, you can order a user guide by emailing [email protected].
How to get more liners
Knox residents can request one free roll of 75 lime green compostable caddy liners every 6 months. However, supplies are limited and we may run out.
Caddy liners are designed to break down over time. Their average shelf life is up to 12 months so you should not store more than a year's supply.
If you buy your own, they must:
- be lime green (not pale green or any other colour)
- display the code AS4736
- have the seedling symbol.
This is because not all liners are the same. Some compostable liners take longer to break down and are not suitable for your food and garden bin.
If you are new to Knox and didn’t receive a kitchen caddy and a roll of compostable liners, call our Customer Service team on 9298 8000 or email [email protected].
What goes in your bin
Read the lists below to find out what can and can't go into your FOGO bin. You can also view our A to Z rubbish and recycling guide.
- Bread, pasta, cereal and rice
- Coffee grounds
- Dairy leftovers
- Dirty egg cartons * (soiled with egg or food) – Put clean egg cartons into your recycling bin to become new paper products
- Eggshells
- Flowers, grass, leaves, bark, dead foliage, garden pruning, clean timber and branches (under 10cm in diameter)
- Fruit and vegetable scraps
- Human and animal hair
- Leftover food (cooked and raw)
- Lime green compostable liners – only AS4736 type bags with the seedling symbol. This does not include dog poo bags
- Oily pizza boxes * that are 60% or more oily – Put clean pizza lids and not very oily boxes that are free of food scraps into your recycling bin to become new paper products
- Seafood and meat (including bones)
- Small amounts of used paper, paper towels (100% paper-based), napkins (100% paper-based), paper bags, newspaper sheets, and tissues (100% paper-based) *
- Small sticks, tooth pics and skewers
- Weeds can be placed in the FOGO bin if they have not been treated with pesticide. Visit our A to Z waste guide for more information on the correct way to dispose of noxious and environmental weeds.
Compost from this waste service will be used to grow consumable vegetables, fruits and plants.
* Newspaper, paper towel (100% paper-based), tissues and cardboard must not make up more than 3% of the entire contents of your food and garden bin. They must also be free of any staples, sticky-tape, paint or glues.
- Backyard and garage items garden hoses, sporting equipment, gardening tools, batteries and oil containers
- Bamboo plants or plant materials
- Bundled branches, log stumps or tree limbs larger than 10cm in diameter or longer than 30cm
- Cardboard and paper products must not make up no more than 3% of the entire contents of your food and garden bin. They must also be free of any staples, sticky-tape, paint or glues
- Clean egg cartons – put this in your recycling bin
- Clean pizza boxes – put this in your recycling bin
- Cups, bowls, plates and cutlery (including single-use and compostable)
- Furniture, textiles and fabric
- Liquids, fats, greases and oils
- Nappies, personal hygiene products, baby wipes and makeup wipes
- Plastic, biodegradable bags/liners, compostable labelled food packaging, including cling wrap
- Recycled items, such as plastic, glass and plastic pots
- Rubble, rocks, bricks, foil, polystyrene or cellophane
- Metal, such as bottle caps or wire
- Seafood shells, such as oysters
- Soil or potting mix
- Syringes
- Treated and painted timber, treated lattice and building materials
Pet waste
You can't put pet waste (dog poo, cat poo and kitty litter) in the food and garden bin. Pet poo can contain parasites and bacteria that could make the compost unsafe.
Please put any pet waste into your general rubbish bin. You can also buy a discounted pet poo compost system. The pet poo compost system should be placed away from any edible plants/veggie gardens.
Opting out of the service
You can opt out of the food and garden bin service if you can show that you compost all organic material at home. This means that no organic waste goes to your rubbish bin or is collected in the bundled branch service.
You need to provide photo evidence and a brief description of your home composting system, as well as how you process all garden waste.
Evidence can include photos of:
- your compost bin
- worm farm
- a mulcher.
We also require a detailed explanation of how you process items that go in the food and garden bin, such as bones (raw/cooked), meat, dairy, citrus and mouldy food.
If your application is successful, your food and garden bin will be removed.
Opting back into the service
If you wish to opt back into the service, you can contact our Waste Team:
- Phone: 9298 8000
- Email: [email protected]
Where your waste goes
The food and garden waste collected in your green-lid bin is delivered to Biogro in Dandenong South. Biogro is an organic processing facility that makes compost and garden products.
This service has helped Knox recycle 2,600 tonnes of organic material monthly, reducing greenhouse gas emissions by an average of 2,200 tonnes each month. Thanks to residents using the new food and garden service, Knox now diverts 74% of kerbside waste from landfill.
Manage your bin service
Need help with a missed collection, bin repairs or replacements, braille bin stickers, or putting your bins out for collection? Find everything you need on our Bin services and fees page.
