Manchester’s top restaurants are backing a new scheme to push recycling leftover food waste, by assisting a local waste management company launch their Green Chef initiative.

With 7 million tonnes of food being wasted every year in the UK, the new scheme, set up by Salford based, Fresh Start Waste Services has been created to revolutionise food recycling within Manchester.

By recycling 100% of all food waste that they receive, the local waste management company’s Green Chef scheme reduces a business’s carbon footprint and also diverts food waste from landfill. Instead of the waste food being sent to landfill it is then processed to make compost.

Amongst supporters of the scheme is nationally acclaimed restaurant The Mark Addy. Executive Head Chef Robert Owen Brown commented that, ‘The Green Chef’ supports The Mark Addy’s ethos of using local suppliers and reducing environmental damage wherever possible. Robert continued, “I’m glad there is finally a specialist service for recycling food.”

By providing kitchens with compact, convenient indoor food waste caddies and compostable bio bag liners the service is made simple and easy, so that food waste can be emptied quickly and cleanly into large outdoor food bins.
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Amongst other established restaurants signing up to the scheme include, Manchester’s longestestablished quality Turkish restaurant Café Istanbul and Cheshire Life’s Food and Drink Awards ‘Manchester Restaurant of the Year 2011’ Rosso.

Fresh Start Director Nicola McGrath said: “The basic idea behind ‘The Green Chef’ food recycling scheme is to quickly and efficiently separate out compostable and recyclable waste and cut the amount of food being sent to landfill. Under ‘normal’ waste disposal, food waste would ordinarily be mixed in with non-recyclables and directed to landfill, producing the potent greenhouse gas methane. Our scheme directs all the food waste from participating restaurants straight to recycling.”

Restaurants wishing to become part of ‘The Green Chef’ revolution can get further information by contacting Fresh Start on 0808 178 1966.