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Original poster

To consider giving up on food recycling because of fox incursion

64 replies

CarlaH · 12/05/2025 10:43

I am just fed up with coming out in the morning to find our food waste strewn all over the road. We have to put our bins out the evening before as we can never tell when the binmen will come. At the moment they are coming mid morning but they did that before so we started putting our food waste bins out later only for them to return to coming at 6am.

We construct a sort of boxed in arrangement with our other bins because the fox had realised that if we sandwiched the food bin between two other bins it could push it out. Last night I couldn't see any way it could push the bin but still this morning the food bin was on its side on the pavement and the food was everywhere.

We could secure it with a bungee cord but having seen the way the binmen behave I doubt they would be willing to spend the time to wrestle it off and would probably chuck it away as well. They literally walk down the road, empty the food bins into a large bin and then hurl, and I mean hurl, the empty bin on to the pavement or road. I think that as a result of that treatment our bin closure mechanism isn't as robust as it might be.

Any ideas?

OP posts:
Ddakji · 12/05/2025 12:27

Katemax82 · 12/05/2025 12:01

I don't do the food waste thing, it's disgusting

How so?

XenoBitch · 12/05/2025 12:26

I hear you on this. I have just gone in my garden to find my food waste everywhere. My bin locks, and I put a paving slab on it. Foxes still get into it.

Katemax82 · 12/05/2025 12:04

SleepingStandingUp · 12/05/2025 11:33

I'd try not putting food waste in it, but could you then put the chicken carcass etc out for the foxes anyway? Then they'll eat that and leave all the bins alone and won't starve

My MIL used to feed fox's in her garden, then she got a tiny dog when her husband died and...unsurprisingly the poor dog got attacked by a fox!!

Katemax82 · 12/05/2025 12:01

I don't do the food waste thing, it's disgusting

Original poster
CarlaH · 12/05/2025 11:47

I have just brought the bin in to wash as, following the spillage, I had to just sweep it all up with a dustpan and brush and so the food was no longer neatly contained in its bin liner.

It has been broken, presumably as a result of whatever the fox did or the rough handling by the bin men so is not of much use now anyway.

Fortunately for reasons I cannot begin to remember we do have another one in the loft so I will get that one down and start a regime of no meat/fish/eggshells and give the fruit and veg a good spray of orange surface cleaner as well.

Thanks again to all who commented.

OP posts:
Original poster
CarlaH · 12/05/2025 11:43

HermitCrabby · 12/05/2025 11:29

We bought one of these https://www.amazon.co.uk/Kerbside-Compost-Caddy-Locking-Lid/dp/B00X2HM9JI/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?crid=28B0EBOE55NM1&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.icg5l4kH7JYw7kC5lsG8ryDqUEcskChQaN55e5gD1AswIp0yZOdXM997FKqhIebTxHNPqphJ6M8B9gXvXw0-ZdjF9DvVH2XcFNqWATC_L1aUzcFYOKWH7dFD2cvQn6Fe-Q6b1-8S94EVLluXa0efA9uSBFJMZRBD1jSgaGzs9LCGp6qA8a4wzzGVAr2tE-aahOBBiIcehvLDSekadCpDyQ.Ci68OFT6yKDC90KUV5BjljN-j0jipePlMUTf0yDj-Ok&dib_tag=se&keywords=fox+proof+food+waste+bin&qid=1747045598&sprefix=fox%2Caps%2C181&sr=8-1 several years ago and it has done an excellent job of keeping waste in and foxes out. I resented having to pay for it myself, but less than I resent cleaning up mouldering food waste from the front path and pavement.

I did look at that but sadly the council will not countenance a bin that actually works.

OP posts:
Original poster
CarlaH · 12/05/2025 11:42

Ddakji · 12/05/2025 11:34

We are in fox-central and have never had this, but I see that a) you’re not allowed to get a different bin that might actually lock (though I’d double check that with the bin men) and b) you put meat in it (we’re pretty much veggie so rarely have any meat or fish in ours.

But honestly, @CarlaH. Aren’t you ashamed that you’re not making a year’s worth of stock from that chicken carcass? 🤣🤣 Call yourself an MNer, standards are really slipping round here.

LOL. I am feeling suitably chastised. I would say in my defence that we probably only have a whole chicken once or twice a year and one of those is at Christmas. Please forgive me.

OP posts:
AlpacaMittens · 12/05/2025 11:41

I'm adding veg scraps in my compost heap, so far no evidence of rats but I add lots of brown stuff too (old compost, shredded cardboard, etc) and I blitz the veg scraps before adding to compost heap so they're really small!

suki1964 · 12/05/2025 11:37

What is this food waste you speak off??

Our council decided we were to be given a full sized wheelie bin for food/garden waste and a wee caddy for the kitchen with compost bags. We dont have food waste as such, just the odd bones from meat - everything else is composted . So it seemed daft putting out this huge bin once a fortnight for a handful of bones, so Id leave it and of course we got maggots. So now bones go in the general rubbish.

Very very very little food is wasted here, Any leftovers from the plates the dog gets. Fat goes for the birds ( pork rinds ) and any drained fat goes to making fat balls . Coffee grounds go on the garden, eggshells and any veg trimmings - compost

Ddakji · 12/05/2025 11:34

We are in fox-central and have never had this, but I see that a) you’re not allowed to get a different bin that might actually lock (though I’d double check that with the bin men) and b) you put meat in it (we’re pretty much veggie so rarely have any meat or fish in ours.

But honestly, @CarlaH. Aren’t you ashamed that you’re not making a year’s worth of stock from that chicken carcass? 🤣🤣 Call yourself an MNer, standards are really slipping round here.

SleepingStandingUp · 12/05/2025 11:33

I'd try not putting food waste in it, but could you then put the chicken carcass etc out for the foxes anyway? Then they'll eat that and leave all the bins alone and won't starve

Radiatorvalves · 12/05/2025 11:22

I’m in a London borough with millions of foxes and we don’t have this issue. The bins do lock and I put it out on top of the usual bin. The foxes have not got in. And we put meat etc in. I’ve just this morning bleached and scrubbed it as it was beyond rank. Maybe a new design is needed?

Original poster
CarlaH · 12/05/2025 11:18

Chemenger · 12/05/2025 11:01

Could you put the food bin inside one of your wheelie bins?

As I mentioned earlier the binmen use any excuse not to collect. They definitely wouldn't look in another bin to locate the food bin.

OP posts:
Original poster
CarlaH · 12/05/2025 11:17

Really appreciate all the comments. I have heard and then seen the fox doing the pushing of the bin when going to bed at night which is why we tried boxing it in with other bins. I still have no idea how on earth it managed to extract it from the location we put it in. Maybe it pulled it out using the handle. My partner is fed up with having to do the jenga thing anyway so would be glad to be able to stop it.

I had been thinking of putting a large stone on top but the truth is that the bin men really do use any excuse not to empty the bins if they can find one. From what Panicmode1 says it might not work anyway.

The idea of spraying the waste with something is a good one so might try that as well as not putting any meat/fish waste out.

OP posts:
GETTINGLIKEMYMOTHER · 12/05/2025 11:11

Timetochillnow · 12/05/2025 10:52

Our brown food waste box locks by pushing the handle right over the back of the box - we’ve never had issues with our foxes being able to get past that

Same, and we have a lot of foxes around here. We have at least one in the garden every night. I only know because I sleep badly so when I see the security light come on I look out and there is Fred Fox on his rounds.

Ub12 · 12/05/2025 11:08

I spray my bin with citrus antibacterial spray (mandarin flash spray for example that I buy for cleaning the kitchen) when I put it out and this seems to help deter foxes and cats from trying to get to it. And I do put my bin when I leave for my night shift so it’s out for quite a few hours….

AdoraBell · 12/05/2025 11:06

We have a brown box for food waste and the handle locks it, this one has the handle upright.

How is your food waster box?

We have a crow on our road that takes the packaging out of the plastics boxes, it’s annoying it not as messy as good waste being spread over the pavement.

JHound · 12/05/2025 11:03

CarlaH · 12/05/2025 10:49

I've noticed that some people put the food bins on top of the other bins but I really think the fox wouldn't have any problem jumping up and knocking it off at which point I would expect the bin to break.

I am actually very happy to do the recycling but not if I am going to have to go out most weeks and try and clear the mess.

So that’s what my brother was doing and the foxes just knocked them off.

Newstartplease24 · 12/05/2025 11:03

I feel your pain, I don’t blame you for not wanting to grovel about hand-clearing rotting food every week.

I don’t use the food waste bins. I use my own compost heap for veggie waste and I’m afraid meat and fish goes in the landfill bin. This is not ideal but as far as I’m concerned the council havent given us a workable way of collecting all food waste so I’m composting what’s safe in my garden (without encouraging rats) and fuck the rest. (There is not much rest tho - the vast majority get composted)

imo offering workable solutions for the majority of waste would make more sense than this

I mean why not have a community veggie compost heap - less transport, actual compost for allotments etc - and let people throw the rest in the bins

JHound · 12/05/2025 11:02

My brother stopped recycling food due to foxes. I would stop too.

Chemenger · 12/05/2025 11:01

Could you put the food bin inside one of your wheelie bins?

Panicmode1 · 12/05/2025 11:00

Oh and we didn't put meat waste out...but we do get through a lot of eggs so maybe that was the issue!

Panicmode1 · 12/05/2025 10:59

We gave up. Even with a brick on top of the locked food caddy, they were getting in..so it just goes in the green bin with everything else...which I felt guilty about until I saw the bin men just tip the food waste into the same bit of the lorry as the general waste!

Original poster
CarlaH · 12/05/2025 10:57

footpath · 12/05/2025 10:56

As above i don't put any meat waste, just veg really.

That might be a solution, to put the fish/meat waste in our general bin and just keep the food bin for veg and fruit waste. We could maybe freeze it so that it doesn't stink too much.

Thanks, I hadn't thought of that.

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