The fate of our green waste once it's picked up from the kerbside, is a mystery to many Victorians. But for some people in Geelong, it's ending up back on their plates in a round-about way used as compost to grow food for those in need.
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00:00Hamdia Mamadi shops at this social supermarket in Geelong monthly,
00:07swapping food vouchers in exchange for groceries.
00:11We save money for electric fields and gas and home and kids.
00:17Not just a bargain, it's also saving the environment.
00:21Some of the produce here is grown using green waste.
00:25About 750,000 tonnes of organic material from green bins
00:31is picked up yearly from 57 of Victoria's 79 councils.
00:37The City of Greater Geelong is setting an example,
00:40converting green waste into compost locally.
00:43The waste that we're creating rather than going into landfill
00:46is actually creating nutrients, going into food supply
00:50and going back to the residents that we have that are most in need in Geelong.
00:53First it's hand-picked to extract contaminants.
00:57It's then ground down before a machine helps to turn and irrigate the material.
01:03Then into a pile for maturation before it's broken down and bagged.
01:09Landfill space is really expensive.
01:12We also don't want to send organic matter to landfill because it generates methane.
01:16About 2,000 tonnes is provided to the Geelong Botanic Gardens.
01:21Those garden bins have performed a lot better than the ones that don't.
01:25About four crates of produce is donated to Geelong Foodshare every fortnight.
01:31Geelong is one of eight Victorian councils granted funding by Sustainability Victoria
01:36to increase the use of compost made from green waste within the community
01:40with hopes to expand the initiative to other local government areas to feed those in need.
01:45The more we can invest in turning those resources back into new products like composts and like mulch,
01:51the better value we get out of those.
01:53A circular economy turning trash into treasure.
01:57The more we can invest in new products like farmers is one of the most important important things
01:59to be able to think about the resources that are built on and the future.
02:00The more we can invest in our�
02:01and the more we can invest in new products like that millones are the most important things
02:02that are available to treasure.