Environment – Tackling food waste in schools

Every year, Aotearoa throws away around 157,398 tonnes of food, and each week Auckland produces enough waste to fill Eden Park stadium. A survey from 2018 also found that up to 55 per cent of what Auckland households put in their landfill bins is compostable. That means many of us are sending far more to landfill than we need to. But a local programme is tackling that, one lunchbox at a time.

Several local schools across the Hibiscus and Bays Local Board area are taking part in the Zero Waste Zero Carbon programme. Operating across North Auckland for more than five years, the programme is funded by local boards and was established by Hibiscus Coast Zero Waste. I was lucky enough to facilitate the Hibiscus and Bays programme back in 2022 and again this year.

The programme aims to build positive attitudes, knowledge, and practical skills around reducing waste, composting, and building healthy soil. The broader goal is behaviour change across schools and communities to reduce what goes to landfill and instead focus on composting at schools or partnering with compost providers.

Both staff and students learn that food scraps sent to landfill rot and create greenhouse gases like methane, whereas composting not only builds healthy soil but also helps store carbon in the ground as plants grow. This shifts what we often see as “rubbish” into a valuable resource that fights climate change and helps us grow good food. 

It is then put into practice as students collaborate to set up food scrap diversion systems, composts and gardens, and then educate other students. The programme is tailored to each school’s goals and existing systems to support, expand or establish what is needed.

Current schools participating include Whangaparāoa College, Ōrewa College, Murrays Bay Intermediate, St John’s School, and a collective of local reo rua (bilingual Māori) classes.

Ōrewa College already has a great garden space and is focusing on working with its enthusiastic Enviro Group and food tech block, while Whangaparāoa College is beginning with its Year 7 and 8 students and adding garden beds beside the playground.

The students, staff, and teachers I’ve had the pleasure of working with have all been collaborative, supportive, and genuinely excited about growing food in their schools and looking after our city by sending less to landfill. It’s inspiring to see local schools taking action and the next generation leading by example.