13 Mar 2019

Find out what goes on at New Zealand's largest food and green waste processing plant at an upcoming open day.

Christchurch City Council’s Organics Processing Plant, operated by Living Earth, is having its annual public open day on Saturday, 16 March from 10am until 3pm.

Organics Processing Plant in Bromley

The Organics Processing Plant in Bromley is holding its annual open day this Saturday 16 March.

Living Earth is the organics waste contractor that processes the food and garden waste residents put in their green wheelie bins each week. The plant, at 40 Metro Place, Bromley is the largest in-vessel industrial composting facility in New Zealand and has been operating for 10 years. 

Visitors will have the chance to tour the plant on Saturday to see New Zealand's largest compost windrow turner, watch videos showing the plant's machinery in action, and take a look at a green collection truck. There's also the chance to take home prizes and giveaways at this family day out.

Each year, the plant converts more than 50,000 tonnes of food and green waste collected from Christchurch households into more than 35,000 cubic metres of compost and soil conditioner compost.

This means organic waste can be recycled into a high-quality, useful product instead of going into landfill.

The green waste material is matured in windrows (long rows outside) and takes another two months to transform into compost that can be used in home gardens, the city’s open spaces and parks, and the rural Canterbury market.

Council Solid Waste Manager Ross Trotter says many residents have no idea what happens after their green bins are emptied into a collection truck.

“Heading to the open day is a great way to find out how food scraps are transformed into a valuable product that’s used in a variety of ways all over Canterbury. This is a really successful operation that's the largest food diversion facility in the country and most residents don't realise it's happening in their city.”

Parking for the open day is available onsite or in Metro Place. Find out more about rubbish and recycling here