By Andree Withey
Posted Tue Jan 12, 2010 8:00am AEDT
Updated Tue Jan 12, 2010 8:07am AEDT
16 wheelie bins have been rejected for collection in the last week because the bins were overloaded with rotting mangoes. (Vanessa Mills)
A glut of homegrown mangoes has become a problem for some south-east Queensland residents, with the weight of the fruit proving too heavy for waste collectors.
The Brisbane City Council says 16 wheelie bins have been rejected for collection in the last week because the bins were overloaded with rotting mangoes.
One bin filled with mangoes weighed 170 kilograms - 100 kilograms more than the allowable limit.
The council says even filling half a wheelie bin with the fruit is too much for a waste collection truck's arm to lift.
One southside resident says she has about 60 mangoes fall from her tree each night.
The council has advised residents either to go to the dump with their excess fruit or hire a skip, as overfilled bins cannot be emptied."
Is is amazing to me that some such fortunate residents have yet to share their surplus produce when there are so many hungry people in our local and wider communities.
Some of these trees may be heritage trees which were planted many years ago by the pioneers who had a real understanding about food and where it came from..
May I suggest that if you have too much food for your own needs that even spoiled fruit can be used to make compost as a final destination - and chutney does not require perfect fruit.
Please reconsider how we can avoid burying unwanted food in landfill. It can be used by nature to convert the nutrients into compost and feed the soil again.
Your local community garden and Slow Food Australia may be able to help you.
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