How to use your bins

Food organics and garden organics (FOGO) bin

Our FOGO bins are dark green with a lime green lid. 

Use the FOGO bin to separate your food and garden waste from your household waste. We collect food and garden waste to turn it into compost to be used on farms, parks and gardens.

What goes in the FOGO bin

• Most food waste such as fruit, vegetables, dairy products, eggshells, spoiled food, loose tea leaves and coffee grounds. 
• Most garden waste such as leaves, lawn clippings, weeds and small twigs and branches (up to 75 mm in diameter). Don't put garden waste in a bag.
• Most dirty or wet cardboard and paper, such as newspaper and tissues.

What can't go in the FOGO bin

These are the top items that can't go in the FOGO bin:

• tea bags
• any kind of plastic
• nappies
• pet poo
• stickers on fruits and vegetables. 

For a full list of items we do and don't collect in your FOGO bin, check our A to Z recycling and waste guide.

Using your FOGO caddy

You can use your FOGO caddy (the small kitchen FOGO bin) to collect food waste before placing in the larger FOGO bin.  

You can use no caddy liner, or line it with:

• an accepted AS4736-certfified compostable liner
• a paper bag
• newspaper
• paper towel.   

Information in languages other than English

You can also read this FOGO information in:

• Mandarin (Simplified Chinese) – 厨余及园林垃圾共用回收桶
• Cantonese (Traditional Chinese) – 厨余及園林垃圾共用回收桶
• Vietnamese – Kết hợp thùng rác thực phẩm và rác thải vườn tược
• Italian – Bidone combinato per rifiuti alimentari e di giardinaggio
• Greek – Συνδυασμένος κάδος απορριμμάτων τροφίμων και αποβλήτων κήπων
• Arabic – حاوية مشتركة لنفايات الأطعمة ومخلفات الحديقة

For other languages please contact a free interpreting service on (03) 9007 2802.

 Recycling bin

Our recycling bins are blue with a yellow lid and we are transitioning to bins with dark green bodies and a yellow lid. Read about why we are changing our bin colours.

What goes in the recycling bin

The only items that can be placed in the recycling bin are:

• plastic bottles like milk, juice and sauce bottles (leave lids on)
• hard plastic containers like margarine tubs, biscuit trays, punnets, yoghurt pots and takeaway containers
• glass jars and bottles (leave lids and labels on)
• paper, newspapers, magazines and junk mail
• cardboard and cereal boxes
• steel tins
• aluminium cans and foil
• empty aerosol cans.

Make sure items are loose (not in bags) and empty. 

What can't go in the recycling bin

These are the top items that can't go in the recycling bin:

• bagged recycling
• plastic bags and soft plastic wrappings (these must go in the household waste bin)
• food and garden waste
• polystyrene packaging, cups and meat trays
• textiles and clothing
• ceramic plates, cups and crockery.

Use our comprehensive A to Z recycling and waste guide to find out how to recycle or dispose of items that can't be placed in your recycling bin.

Check the Australasian Recycling Label (ARL)

Look for the Australasian Recycling Label-external site, now found on the back of most supermarket items.

These labels provide easy-to-understand information about what can be recycled. 

The label will tell you where each piece of packaging from an item should go; for example the lid, the wrapper and the container.

Plastic codes

Contaminated recycling bins

Contaminated recycling can lead to an entire truck load of recycling being sent to landfill.

If you put items in your recycling bin that are not accepted, your bin may be tagged with information and advice on how to correctly dispose of the contaminating items.

If you continue to put items in your recycling bin that are not accepted, it may result in your bin not being emptied.

By recycling correctly, you help to reduce the amount of waste sent to landfill and contribute to a circular economy. Materials collected in recycling bins are processed into new packaging and building materials.

Information in languages other than English

You can also read this recycling information in:

• Mandarin (Simplified Chinese) – 回收箱里该放什么？
• Cantonese (Traditional Chinese) – 可回收垃圾桶可以放什麼垃圾？
• Vietnamese – Bỏ những loại rác nào vào thùng rác tái chế của quý vị?
• Greek – Τι πράγματα βάζουμε στον κάδο ανακύκλωσης;
• Arabic – ما الذي يمكن رميه في حاوية النفايات التي يمكن إعادة تدويرها ؟

For other languages please contact a free interpreting service on (03) 9007 2802.

Household waste bin

Our household waste bins are green with a dark green lid and we are transitioning to bins that are green with a red lid. Read about why we are changing our bin colours. 

Use this bin for household waste that can't be separated into your recycling or FOGO bin.

Use our comprehensive A to Z recycling and waste guide to find out how to dispose of items that can't be placed in your waste bin.

More information

Find out what happens to your waste, FOGO and recycling. 

To learn more about reducing waste going to landfill, visit our reduce and recycle your waste page.