Climate change on the menu? : a retrospective look at the development of South Australian municipal food waste policy

Australian households are throwing out more than $5 billion worth of food each year, with over 40% of household food wasted. This non-consumed food constitutes a waste of resources and energy that needlessly contribute to Australia’s ecological and carbon footprints. To further complicate matters, the management, transport, and disposal of this non-consumed food is a problem that does not have a comprehensive federally legislated and governed solution. Instead, the collection and processing of municipal food waste is organised by local area councils with support and additional funding from state and federal governments. This has resulted in conflicting waste practices across Australia. This paper investigates the development of waste practices in South Australia, with the objective to understand how this particular state has developed a high level of political commitment to positive environmental action while other Australian states have taken a more conservative position. Opening with a broad discussion upon contemporary food waste policy in Australia, this paper will then delve into a historical discussion on the development of South Australia’s municipal waste system in conjunction with an evaluation of the present municipal food waste disposal options that are available within South Australian homes.