Around 23,000 Luton flats are getting food waste caddies in eight rounds to the end of March 2027. The first round started on 14 September. What you get and what goes in.

Weekly food waste collections are reaching Luton’s flats. Around 23,000 flats will get caddies over the next six months, in eight rounds running from September 2026 to the end of March 2027.

The first round of collections started on Monday 14 September. Luton Council announced the rollout on 24 September.

Houses have had the service since 31 March. The council says more than 60,000 kerbside households now use it.

What you will get

Each flat gets:

  • a small blue kitchen caddy to collect food waste indoors
  • a larger communal food waste bin, placed where your building’s other bins are kept

You empty your kitchen caddy into the communal bin when it is full. You do not put anything out on the kerb.

The council says the rounds follow its existing waste and recycling collection rounds, grouped by area of the town. It has not published which areas fall in which round, or the dates for each. Instead, the team delivering the caddies will visit each property as its round begins. They will explain how the service works and when your collections start.

What goes in the caddy

The council’s food waste collections page lists what it will take.

Yes:

  • fruit and vegetables, raw, cooked and peelings
  • dairy, such as cheese and yoghurt
  • eggs and eggshells
  • raw and cooked meat and fish
  • small poultry and fish bones
  • leftover food from plates
  • bread, cakes and pastries
  • rice, pasta and cereal
  • tea bags and coffee grounds

No:

  • large bones
  • packaging
  • liquids, oils or liquid fat

The council warns that “incorrect items will result in your caddy not being emptied.”

You can line the kitchen caddy with a clear bag. The council suggests reusing bread, cereal or fruit and veg bags. It removes bags at the recycling facility. For a plastic-free option, use newspaper, paper towels or kitchen roll.

Why the council is doing it

The council says about 35% of the household rubbish thrown away in Luton is food waste. Collected separately, it is turned into fertiliser and renewable energy rather than going in the general waste.

Councillor Steve Stephens, Portfolio Holder for Strategic Waste Authority, said recycling unavoidable food waste “will help reduce the amount of rubbish going into refuse bins and turn it into something useful, including renewable energy and fertiliser.”

The service is part of the government’s Simpler Recycling policy. That policy says councils must collect the core recyclable waste streams from all households in England by 31 March 2026. The council’s announcement does not say how its flats timetable, which runs a year past that date, fits with the national one.

What it means for you

If you live in a flat and nothing has arrived yet, wait for the delivery team. The council has not published a round-by-round list, so there is no date to look up.

One thing to be aware of: the council’s own food waste page had not caught up when we read it on 28 September. It still said the service for flats “is not live yet and will be introduced in the coming months”. Go by the 24 September announcement, and by what the delivery team tells you when they call.

If you live in a house and your caddy is missing or damaged, the council’s request a new bin form covers food caddies. Your outdoor caddy goes out by 6am on your usual collection day.

Collection days for every Luton bin are in Luton bin collection days, and the changes over the festive season are in Luton Christmas bin collections.

Sources: Luton Council, 24 September 2026; Luton Council food waste collections page, read 28 September 2026.