From 1 July 2026, NSW law requires larger businesses to separate food waste from general rubbish and have it collected weekly. Here is who is covered, the staged thresholds, the penalties, and how to set up your bins.
If you run a food business in NSW, the rules just changed. From 1 July 2026, the largest food-waste generators must separate food organics from their general waste and have it collected on its own. This is a legal duty, not a council recommendation, and NSW is the first state in the country to compel businesses this way.
Here is the plain version of what the law asks, who it covers, and how to get your bins set up before the deadline.
The duty comes from the Protection of the Environment Legislation Amendment (FOGO Recycling) Act 2025, which amends the Protection of the Environment Operations Act 1997. The NSW EPA is the regulator.
For businesses, the requirement is a source-separated food organics (FO) collection. That is an important distinction. Households in NSW are moving to FOGO, which combines food organics and garden organics in one bin. The business obligation is food organics only, kept separate from your general waste, collected at least once a week. Garden waste is a household concern; for a cafe or a supermarket, it is the food scraps that matter.
In short: a dedicated food-waste bin, collected weekly, separate from your red-lid general waste.
The mandate targets "relevant premises" that generate meaningful volumes of food waste. That includes:
If your business prepares, sells or serves food at scale, assume you are in scope and confirm your tier with the EPA.
The rollout is staged by how much residual (general) waste capacity your site has. The more general waste you produce, the sooner you must comply.
The exact litre thresholds are set by the EPA and have been quoted slightly differently by some collection companies. Use the EPA figures as your guide and confirm which stage your site falls into before you act.
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Get a quoteThese are real numbers. The maximum penalty for failing to comply is up to $500,000 for a company and up to $250,000 for an individual, with further daily penalties for an offence that continues. The point is not to frighten you, it is to make clear this sits alongside your other environmental duties, not below them.
The practical work is smaller than the legislation makes it sound.
Pulling food waste out of your general bin does two useful things. It shrinks the general-waste volume you pay a landfill levy on, and it gets you compliant before the rush. Every food business in your catchment will be sourcing organics collection in the same window, so the operators with capacity will fill up. Sorting it early is the calmer path.
Is this FOGO or FO? For NSW businesses it is FO, food organics only, kept separate from general waste. FOGO (food and garden combined) is the household kerbside system. Do not confuse the two.
Does this apply outside NSW? No. NSW is the only state that legally compels businesses to separate food waste. Other states have targets, incentives and rising levies, but no business food-waste mandate at this stage.
What if I am a small cafe under the threshold? You may not be in Stage 1, but the thresholds tighten in 2028 and 2030, and separating food waste cuts your general-waste cost regardless. Setting up early is sensible.
Obligations vary by council and change each 1 July, so confirm your exact tier and start date with your council or the NSW EPA before you commit.
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Stage 1 begins 1 July 2026 for the largest generators (residual capacity around 3,960 litres or more). Stage 2 follows on 1 July 2028 and Stage 3 on 1 July 2030. Confirm your tier with the NSW EPA.
For businesses it is food organics (FO) only, separated from general waste and collected at least weekly. FOGO combining food and garden waste is the household kerbside system.
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