Carve and consume your pumpkins this Halloween

Aberdeenshire Council is encouraging residents to both carve and consume their pumpkins this Halloween to save money and reduce food waste.

According to environmental campaign group Hubbub, around 22.2 million pumpkins will be left uneaten in the UK this year, which is around £32.6 million worth of edible food thrown away after carving.

Similarly, a recent compositional waste analysis in Aberdeenshire highlighted that loose and packaged food waste accounted for more than 22% of what ended up in residents' landfill bins.

Food waste recycling is more economical than landfill and benefits the environment. All food waste collected by the council in food caddies is sent to Keenan Recycling in New Deer, where it is converted into compost and used on farmers’ fields across Aberdeenshire.

Waste Manager Ros Baxter said: "29% of what people throw away in Aberdeenshire can be recycled at the kerbside using existing services—and the majority of that 29% is actually easily identifiable food waste. This means that there is an opportunity for residents to both save their money, reduce waste, and divert council resource to more beneficial areas.

"This Halloween is a great time to do just that and we're encouraging everyone to make good use of their pumpkins. We will be highlighting some delicious pumpkin-themed recipes on our Recycling and Waste Aberdeenshire Facebook page, some of which are suitable for kids to get involved in, too."

Remaining pumpkins too old to be eaten can still be recycled. Pumpkins can be chopped up and put into food waste caddies or placed whole on top of your bin on collection day.

For more information on what can be put in your food caddy, please download the myAberdeenshire app or visit: http://bit.ly/RecycleAtHome

For pumpkin recipes and food-waste recycling tips, please follow us on our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/AberdeenshireWaste/