Food waste pick-ups moved to biweekly. City of Boston image
Boston residents who use the curbside food waste pickup program learned this week that the program will move from a weekly to a bi-weekly schedule starting on Oct. 5., meaning that those who participate in the “green bin” program will have to hold their food waste for two weeks between collections.
A flier placed on the green bins during this week’s collection explained the reasoning.
“Why every other week?” it asked. “This change reflects real-world usage patterns. Boston’s Curbside Food Waste bins have a large capacity. Did you know most Boston residents don’t set their bin out weekly?”
The program was heralded as a pilot when introduced by the city in 2022 and became popular citywide as it expanded enrollment. Residents who participate are also able to retrieve bags of composted soil generated from food waste pickups each spring.
The flier indicated that “we have collected over (20 million pounds) of food scraps and counting.”
For those wishing to continue weekly pickups, the city has referred them to a private company – Garbage to Garden – that will do weekly collections for $5.50 per pickup.
The city’s Public Works Department (PWD) did not respond to a request for comment before publication.
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