Barbecues and warm weather just go hand in hand, don’t they? Spending quality time with loved ones, then cooking up a storm on a barbecue, all whilst the suns out…it can be great fun.
In fact, Brits fired up their barbecues 114.9 million times in 2024! That’s a 9.2% rise on the previous year, and the highest number since 2021 when the UK was still under partial lockdown.
It’s good to hear we’re enjoying spending time outdoors in the nice weather, which is great for wellbeing. But please make sure when you throw your next barbecue you remember to recycle as well.
Cllr Terry Evans, Lead Member for Environment, said: “Many residents enjoy cooking and eating outdoors, particularly when it’s warm and the sun’s shining. We’re just asking people to make sure that any packaging or food waste still gets recycled – as you usually would if you were indoors. Please don’t treat your food or its packaging any differently at your barbecue, and be aware there’s plenty of things that can be recycled.”
With that in mind, here are a few ideas that will make it easier for you to recycle at your next barbecue.
Leftovers
For starters, all uneaten food bits can be recycled. A good tip is to take your caddy outside and pop any bones in as you go along. It makes cleaning up afterwards much easier, just make sure you keep the lid shut when you’re not using it to avoid any pesky flies.
It’s also a good idea to do any initial prep work next to your food caddy – such as getting your salads or veggies ready. That way you can easily just drop any waste straight in.
If you’ve overcooked, why not store the food safely ready to eat the next day? Cool leftovers as quickly as possible (ideally within two hours) and then store them in the fridge. Just make sure to eat any leftovers within two days, except for cooked rice, which you should eat within one day to help avoid food poisoning.
You can check out Love Food Hate Waste’s ‘make your food go further’ guides for more information on this[CR1] .
Tip: Do you use wooden skewers for your kebabs or marshmallows? Because something you mightn’t know is that these can be recycled as food waste in your caddy, as can all wooden cutlery!
Try to stay on top of which foods can be recycled
We know there can be a lot to remember, but staying on top of what can go in your food caddy really helps us out.
Some of these things include:
- Fruit and veg – raw and cooked
- Fruit peel – from watermelon, oranges, apples etc.
- Meat and fish – raw and cooked
- Bones and egg shells
- Rice, pasta, cereal and noodles
- Bread, cakes, pastries and biscuits
- Tea bags and coffee grounds
- Cheese, eggs and yogurts
- Beans, nuts, pulses and seeds
- Uneaten food from your plate
- Wooden cutlery
Take a look at this for more info.
Meat trays
Whether you’re cooking for two people or 20 people, with barbecues there’s usually a lot of plastic meat trays involved, and don’t forget, in Wrexham all plastic meat trays can be recycled at the kerbside!
Just make sure there’s no food residue on them when you recycle them…this is very important. It doesn’t take long – a quick rinse or wash in used dishwater usually does the trick – and this means it gets recycled into a much better quality product.
Set aside an area for your used bottles and cans
Another neat trick is to set up a space nearby for any used beer bottles, pop bottles or cans, so that you can easily store them ready to be recycled when you finish your barbecue.
Try setting up a box or carrier bag you can drop them in as you go along. Then you can take it straight across to your recycling boxes when you’re done. See what works best for you.
Make summer bunting
If you’re feeling super-creative, why not have a go at making some summer bunting to add some extra colour to your barbecue?
You can use up any unwanted pieces of fabric you have lying around, or you can even upcycle your old clothes.
If you don’t know where to start with this, there are some handy guides online, including this one from BBC’s Good Food page.
Outdoor games
To add some extra fun for the family, you could hire fun party packs and outdoor games from Lend & Mend (based in Tŷ Pawb). The great thing about borrowing from Lend & Mend is the costs are low and it and saves you having to pay full price for something you won’t need very often. After all, celebrations should be exciting, not expensive!
Browse the online catalogue and see what’s available!
Try to avoid disposable barbecues
We see why these can be appealing to some people, but they contribute massively to the throwaway culture that’s threatening the environment.
Having a reusable barbecue works out much cheaper in the long run. Reusable barbecues can last for several years, and when the time eventually comes to say goodbye to your trusty old grill, you can still recycle it as scrap metal at any of the three recycling centres in Wrexham.
Be aware – If you do use a disposable barbecue, you must make sure it’s fully cooled down and all the ashes have burnt out before putting it in the bin.
Gas canisters
These are reusable, but if you do want to dispose of any canisters, please bring them to any of our three recycling centres. Do not under any circumstances try to put these in your black bin waste, as this will cause a fire risk at our recycling centre.
For more info on recycling in Wrexham take a look at our website.
It’s (still) not too late to sign up for garden waste collections – Wrexham Council News
