Composting project awarded over £1 million to inspire communities to cut food waste

  1. Key initiatives
  2. Composting project awarded over £1 million to inspire communities to cut food waste
  • Compost Culture awarded over £1m of National Lottery funding to create ‘compost villages’ across Birmingham to help tackle the problem of food waste
  • Funding part of 10-year £100 million Climate Action Fund
  • Over the last 12 months, The National Lottery Community Fund has distributed £5.7 million across the UK to projects that involve tackling the issue of food waste.

Climate change is everybody’s business, which is why we are supporting communities across the UK to take climate action.

One of the easiest and most impactful ways we can all do this is by reducing the amount of food we all throw out to landfill.

Incredible Surplus CIC, based in Birmingham, is working hard to combat a growing epidemic of food waste in the UK and has been awarded over £1 million to set up ‘compost villages’ across Birmingham, which will be used to grow fresh, nutritious food locally, as well as educate the community about the power of compost.

Research from the food waste campaign group behind Food Waste Action Week, WRAP, which takes place every year in March, shows that 6.4 million tonnes of food and drink waste is generated annually from UK households, which equates to 341kg per household of four people – or the weight of a grand piano!

Elizabeth Rowe, Project Manager at Incredible Surplus, said: “There is a quote that we use from WRAP, as we think it sums up so simply and powerfully the problem of food waste both locally, nationally and internationally: ‘If global food waste were a country, it would be the third biggest emitter of greenhouse gases, behind the USA and China’.

“While Food Waste Action Week is a chance for us to highlight the extent of this problem, I would also like everyone to realise that composting is climate action. It is an activity you can do every day at home that will support the fight against climate change. Every time you throw something compostable into your bin, you are contributing to climate change. With the right techniques, you can significantly reduce the amount you unthinkingly put in your black bin bag.”

Birmingham-based organisations General Public, The Active Wellbeing Society, St Paul’s Community Development Trust, Birmingham Friends of the Earth, and Crick Gardens will support the compost villages and support expert advice and guidance on how people can get to grips with composting at home.

Incredible Surplus also works with supermarkets and restaurants to intercept and redistribute food that would otherwise go to waste, providing it to individuals and community organisations on a ‘pay as you feel’ basis. By extending its work into composting, the group is now working with Birmingham’s retail sector to ensure that as little food as possible is wasted.

Separating food waste is set to become a legal requirement for retailers with more than 10 staff – such as supermarkets, cafes, and restaurants - at the end of March 2025. Failure to do so could lead to a compliance notice from the Environment Agency and potentially a hefty fine.

Elizabeth Rowe says: “Establishing a good 'compost culture' in your organisation is achievable if everyone - from the top to the bottom - is on board. With clear guidance, correct infrastructure from local authorities, and an appreciation from business owners of the extra time needed by their staff time, it should be straightforward for those in the retail and service sector to separate their food waste.”

Next year will see the battle against food waste refocused on domestic households, with councils up and down the country to introduce dedicated food waste bins so that families can ensure their leftovers can be composted elsewhere if not in their own gardens.

Elizabeth Rowe said: “All the project partners were relieved by the news that Birmingham City Council will be bringing in a food waste collection scheme. Collecting the food waste from a city of over 1 million people is an enormous undertaking. We will continue to support this process by offering advice, resources, and a busy public programme of weekly activity, where people can come to learn about composting.”

Mita is one person that has had her eyes opened to the problem of food waste since becoming a volunteer at Incredible Surplus after moving to the UK from her home in Bangladesh.

She said: “Before I used to throw out all the household rubbish, now I collect the leftover food and vegetables peelings in a pot and make compost. Now I don’t buy any compost at all - it is all homemade. Last year I used it to grow courgette, marrow, potatoes!

“Being part of Incredible Surplus has been incredibly rewarding and taught me so much about the impact of food waste and how I can contribute to a greener and more sustainable future. With the help of the new funding, more people like me will be able to roll their sleeves up and get composting.”

Incredible Surplus’ new £1m grant is part of The National Lottery Community Fund’s 10-year £100 million Climate Action Fund. Over the last 12 months, The National Lottery Community Fund has distributed £5.7 million through almost 100 grants across the UK to projects that involve tackling the issue of food waste.

Mel Eaglesfield, Funding Strategy, Communications, and Impact Director at The National Lottery Community Fund, said: “Food Waste Action Week is a timely reminder that we can all play a part in climate action as part of our every-day lives. Which is why we’re proud to fund a project like Compost Culture, which is having a profoundly positive impact on behaviours within the Birmingham community.

“By working with diverse communities like those found in Birmingham, Climate Action Fund projects are helping to create lasting change for generations to come."

You can apply now for Climate Action Fund - Our Shared Future.