Leicestershire residents give Green Cone the green light
More than 700 Green Cones have been sold in Leicestershire and residents are excited about how using the Green Cone is reducing the amount of rubbish they put out for collection.
Charlotte Booth, East Goscote, Charnwood
I’ve been using the Green Cone for just over a year. To start with I used it a lot, I do have a compost bin as well, and so all cooked leftovers went in it. But now I am more careful about any kind of waste. I try to make all my own meals from scratch so reducing the amount of leftovers we have.
It’s very easy to use, but I don’t use the caddy anymore as I just put a few things directly into the cone when I need to. These days I only really put in egg shells, chicken bones, a bit of mouldy bread and as I’ve got a baby son there’s sometimes leftover milk that goes in.
The amount of rubbish that is sent to landfill made me want to get one. I’ve always composted, but when I read about the Green Cone I thought it was an excellent way of reducing my own waste that goes to landfill. It has helped greatly in reducing the amount that I now put out for collection. My bin is only a quarter full a week.
It was excellent value for money, considering it was installed for us. It took the lads a good hour to dig the hole and install it, I’m not sure I would have got round to doing that myself. It meant we could start using it immediately.
The best thing about the green cone is that you’re not contributing to landfill. It really brings the message home and makes you realise how much you waste, which changes your shopping habits. It also makes the surrounding ground very fertile; mine now has plants growing around it that never grew there before. There’s no smell, no odour of any kind, even when it’s really hot.
Everyone should get one!
Jackie MacDonald from North West Leicestershire District bought a Green Cone earlier this year.
I have had the Green Cone since February 09, and it’s very easy to use.
I first heard about them at the local primary school as they’ve had a green cone for a while, and as we’re already compost bin users it seemed perfect for getting rid of extra food waste that can’t be composted.
I use the caddy supplied and started it off with accelerator powder which was included. I mainly put cooked foods in it, even meat & bones – just about anything that can’t go in my compost bin. You can definitely see the food reducing in the basket.
I didn’t like seeing food waste go into the main bin, but now no food goes into the bin at all. It’s definitely good value for money, especially as it was installed for us.
The best thing about the Green Cone is making use of the food that would’ve otherwise gone to landfill. I’ve put it in a raised bed, as I have heavy clay soil and the plants in there look very healthy.
Peggy Clements, Glen Parva, BlabyI had my Green Cone installed before Christmas 2008 and the 2 men who came to install it were fantastic. The first time I heard about them was in a Blaby District newsletter, and I thought they sounded like such a good idea I rang straight away to buy one.
I use it every day, it’s very easy and it’s good that’s there no smell from the cone or the caddy. I put fruit and vegetable peelings, greens, salads, cooked plate leftovers in it.
Now I have a Green Cone I don’t have to wrap leftover food up to put in the bin and I don’t feel guilty about throwing food away.
Judith Isufi from Oadby District had her Green Cone installed August 2008
I use it every other day, with other compost bins, but I find the caddy a bit small.
It’s very straight forward to use, there’s no smell at all, but in the summer there are a few fruit flies, but just when you open the lid. I mostly put in stale bread, leftover meat, plate scrapings, things that can’t go into the compost bin
I got one because of all the recent environmental thinking and listening to environmental concerns, I didn’t like throwing away food.
It’s cut down the waste in the main bin. We now don’t put it out for collection every week and that’s as a result of using the green cone.
The price was ok, and because the installation was included we could start using it straight away. Had it not been installed it may have been left on one side for quite a while before we got round to digging the hole.
The best thing about having a Green Cone is feeling good about reducing the amount of waste I send to landfill. There are lots of environmental benefits by not sending this waste to landfill.
I enjoy spreading the word and always recommend it. When people come round the house and see it I explain what it’s all about.
Rosemary Hall, Whetstone, Blaby
I bought my Green Cone at the County Hall, One Day Sale, August 2008.
I had seen the flyer for the sale and on that day Benji needed to go to the vets near County Hall, so I decided to get one. I like to re-use everything.
I’ve also got two wormeries, so the cone gets used a couple of days a week, although I use the caddy every day for things like grapefruit skins, chicken bones, fish skins – food that I can’t feed to the worms. In winter I don’t feed the worms so much, just keep them warm, so then everything goes into the green cone. It’s very easy to use and it doesn’t smell at all.
I suppose it has reduced the amount of waste I put out for collection, but I recycle everything I can. I think its good value especially as it’s also installed for you, that was a real bonus.
The fact that any food can go into it is great and it has other benefits for the environment because the food waste is not going into the landfill
Elizabeth Bowe, Braunstone Town, Blaby
I’ve had my Green Cone since January 2009, I use it every week. I put food into the caddy each day then my daughters put it in the green cone for me once a week.
Apparently the caddy handle can sometimes get in the way when putting food into the cone.
I put in food scraps, bones, leftovers, apple cores etc. But I have a compost bin, so fruit and vegetable peelings go into that.
I don’t like to waste anything. I always want to make use of things. So the Green Cone feels like I am making use of something that would otherwise being thrown away.
It has altered the type of items that are now put out for collection and has many environmental benefits, by not sending it to landfill, reduces methane.
Amanda Halliday, Burbage, Hinckley
Amanda Halliday from Burbage, in Hinckley & Bosworth, has been using a Green Cone since August 2008, and has the following to say about her experiences.
I use the caddy provided and empty into cone at end of each day. We have a little boy, so there’s always a bit of food waste.
It’s very easy to use, I started it off with the accelerator powder in cold weather, but you don’t need that in summer and you can see the food going down quite a bit.
I also have a wormery and compost bin, so the food waste is divided between them. The cone gets all the cooked food and bones that can’t go into the others.
I’d wanted one for ages, but couldn’t justify the full price to my husband, just for a bit of food waste. Once the council subsidised it, then it was affordable. Our main aim was to get rid of the black bin, or just put it out once a year. We recycle everything possible, using the local Recycling & Household Waste Site, Asda Recycling Banks and Kerbside Collections. The black bin only really consisted of cooked food waste, so now we can put that into the Green Cone we no longer have a need for a bin collection.
The best thing about using the green cone is it’s reduced the black bin to nothing, and it doesn’t attract rats. It’s been installed in the vegetable patch, so we’re waiting to see a difference in soil conditions.
I would recommend it to everybody. Even my sister got one as she doesn’t like touching the garden because of worms etc. so won’t have a compost bin. This is great for her to get rid of food waste without having to “deal with it”. Just put in caddy, tip in cone, shut the lid & forget about it!
Mrs Jones from Blaby District had a Green Cone last summer.
I read about them in the local District Newsletter and was attracted by the fact you can get rid of cooked waste.
I use it every other day and only used the accelerator powder for a bit in winter when there’s no sun on it. It needs to be near the house, mine’s outside the backdoor. I put everything in it, cooked scraps, leftovers. I did put a carcass in once, but feel a bit strange about that.
It has definitely reduced the amount of waste we put out for collection. We have a weekly collection and it’s now only half full, probably reduced by a third (with 3 people living in the house).
It’s very good value for money, especially as it’s been subsidised even further. Getting rid of your own cooked food leftovers has made it a lot easier to reduce your waste. There are now no guilty feelings from filling up the bin and it means there’s a lot less waste.
My only negative was that there wasn’t enough advice prior to installation about where it should be positioned. It is therefore in the grass and I wish it was now in the flowerbed and passing nutrients to the plants rather than making the lawn grow quick!
I’ve encouraged my local school to have one (they now have 2!) and I’m spreading the news to my neighbours.
Kathy Platts, Sileby, Charnwood
Kathy Platts has been using a green cone for a year
We use the Green Cone every other day or so, but as we compost as well we wait until the caddy is full.It’s very easy to use and I’ve bought accelerator powder which reduces the food waste even quicker.
We add anything we can’t compost or feed to the fox, hedgehog or birds. This includes banana and melon skins, meat, bones and plate scrapings.
We’re very aware of issues with landfill and do everything we can to recycle. We already have a brown bin and we compost.
We bought the Green Cone on offer from the County Council and it really tipped the balance that it came fully installed. It is really good value for money.
The best thing about the Green Cone is the satisfaction of reducing the waste we put into the wheelie bin so it doesn’t go to landfill. Its environmental benefits are important for the future generations.
There are other benefits for your garden as the surrounding plants are very lush with the added nutrients in the soil.
By putting your leftover food into the caddy you see how much you waste. We’ve reduced what we buy, so there are long-term savings. They help re-educate you about food shopping in general.
Page Last Updated: 27 July 2009
