Prevention of biowaste is non-stop communication about more than waste avoidance or home composting.

By project CORE

Published on 28 November 2023

Belgium

About this good practice

Flanders started in ’92 with quality assurance of compost and in ’98 with the home composting scheme. Quite soon it was discovered that there were other management possibilities with biowaste and other methods of biowaste prevention.

Vlaco started considering / communicating about side aspects of the organic cycle. For instance the processing of branches and grass clippings, the relevance of perennial use, chicken keeping and food loss prevention... All these aspects are placed in a broader context with a focus on climate(change), water(retention) and biodiversity(upgrade).

Biowaste prevention implies non-stop communication. Vlaco’s communication includes events, activities, lessons, demonstrations, volunteering … in schools, at open garden days, in cultural centra, with physical and online lessons... It includes magazines, brochures, posters, leaflets… It (more recently) includes Instagram, X (the former Twitter), Facebook, LinkedIn, websites, a food loss app, a compostcalculator, home composting manuals, a CO2-tool (where you can calculate the gain of carbon dioxide when you make & use compost instead of incinerating the biowaste, etc). It includes making available (relatively cheaply) utility materials such as compost bins, compost boxes, wormeries, wood shredders, mulch mowers, chicken management equipment…

Expert opinion

Across the European Union, somewhere between 118 and 138 million tons of bio-waste are generated every year, of which currently only about 40% is effectively recycled into high-quality compost and digestate. Apart from a well-functioning biowaste collection and treatment, it is no less important to focus on food waste prevention or alternative uses of biowaste (e.g. chicken feed). In this good practice from Flanders, the organisation Vlaco takes awareness raising and communication of biowaste management to the next level, with their focus on the whole organic cycle. They put biowaste management in a more holistic context, including the relevance for climate change, water retention and biodiversity. Such approach is well in line with the EU Waste Framework Directive and the Circular Economy Action Plan. Vlaco’s extensive communication, events, campaigns and overall a wide range of outreach methods is truly inspirational and the excellent results from Flanders show their success. This good practice is well transferable to other regions.

Magda Michaliková

Works at Interreg Europe Policy Learning Platform

Resources needed

For the moment the approach of prevention / communication about non-composting issues costs Vlaco ± € 50.000 per year (material, events, online tools). Each (inter)municipality in Flanders can - subsequently - use the Vlaco items to work with. Their cost varies depending on commitment.

Evidence of success

Some results of what these years of non-stop communication have entailed.
- 23,9% of biowaste is composted at home;
- 41% of the inhabitants composts at home;
- 32% uses Closed Loop Gardening Techniques (CLGT) in lawn maintenance;
- 24% uses CLGT in branch processing;
- 36% uses CLGT in food loss prevention;
- 36% uses animals (esp. chickens) to reduce organic waste;
- 75% uses perennials in the garden.

Potential for learning or transfer

It is important to inform and enthuse people about the importance of the organic cycle. Out of that group of enthusiasts, there will always be found commited citizens and volunteers that want to spread the closed loop information in the (inter)municipality.
Non-stop communication about non-composting aspects of the biocycle can be useful in regions with logistic, transporting and collecting issues, or towards people that don’t need compost (because they have no garden).