Victoria’s Minister for Environment Steve Dimopoulos has announced a $1 million investment to expand the food and organics processing capacity at Repurpose It in Epping – with the state-wide rollout of four bins ahead of schedule.
Repurpose It’s Epping facility is the largest organics processing facility in the state, having the capacity to process over 200,000 tonnes of organic waste each year into high quality landscaping materials.
The award-winning Greek-led business recently changed ownership late last year, with co-founder George Hatzimanolis still serving as Managing Director and CEO.
With this $4.4 million expansion, Repurpose It will now be able to meet increase demand and expand into new markets.
An additional 87,000 tonnes of quality premium soils, mulches, and composts will be delivered and new decontamination equipment will remove problematic items commonly found in kerbside food organics and garden organics bins.
This will cut the time needed to process waste by 45 per cent and creating new quality mulch and compost.
“We’re changing the way Victorians recycle with our container deposit scheme and the four-bin system, helping us reach our goal of diverting 80 percent of waste from landfill by 2030 and keeping litter out of our environment,” Dimopoulos said in a media release.
“About one third of a household rubbish bin is food waste – that’s why we’re helping innovative businesses like Repurpose It expand their operations, ensuring our organic waste is being turned into something new and useful.”
The Victorian government hope to have all 79 councils on board with the four-bin system, with 31 introduced to the separate glass recycling services and 53 for the kerbside FOGO service so far.
Alongside the goal of diverting 80 per cent of all material away from landfill by 2030, nearly 4000 new jobs are being created, boosting the state’s economy by up to $6.7 billion.
