Can I Compost Fats and Oils?

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No, you shouldn’t compost fats and oils.

The benefit of adding waste fats and oils to a compost heap are vastly outweighed by the potential problems. Not only can they attract rodents and other undesirable creatures to your compost heap, they can cause problems for the composting process: the oils can form water-resistant barriers around other material, displace water and reduce air flow in a heap, thus slowing down the composting process.

A tiny smear of butter or grease on a piece of kitchen roll or a carrot won’t be a huge problem for a compost heap but more than that will start to cause problems.

Fats that are solid at room temperature can be reused to make bird feeders for the garden.

Large quantities of used vegetable oil can be recycled – your local council should be able to advise if it is possible in your area.

Waste fats should NOT be poured down the sink – they can clog pipes and sewers, especially those solid at cooler temperatures.