Food Waste
Pet Waste
Nappies
Used Tissues
Vacuum Contents
Takeaway Cartons
Enterobacteriacea
Can cause stomach upsets.
Danger threshold: 1 million.
Amount found: 200 million.
E.coli
Some strains cause illness.
Danger threshold: Just 100-1,000 of one of the harmful bugs would be enough to cause serious illness.
Amount found: 430,000.
Yeasts
Can be harmful and also causes food to rot.
Danger threshold: A level of 1,000 or lower is acceptable.
Amount found: 32 million.
Pseudomonas aerugino
One million will cause excessive food spoilage.
Amount found: 69 million. A high amount for the sample size.
It indicates a high degree of food spoilage has occurred in the waste left rotting for almost two weeks.
Moulds
Speeds up food rot and odour.
Danger threshold: A level of 1,000 or lower is acceptable.
Amount found: 20 million. Because there was a lot of food waste in the bin, mould was to be expected.
Not all moulds are harmful, but a considerable percentage of those found in the bin can cause illness.
Bacillus cereus
Can cause vomiting.
Danger threshold: 1,500.
Amount found: 1,200.
Unlikely to be harmful to health unless they are ingested — could then cause food poisoning.
Staphylococcus aureus
Known to cause stomach upsets.
Danger threshold: 1,000.
Amount found: 530.
Levels of this gut bacteria were not particularly high, but even so, contamination with the amount found could cause serious problems including food poisoning.
Clostridium Perfringens
Causes similar sickness to salmonella,
though not fatal.
Danger threshhold: 1000.
Amount found: 530.
Levels of this bacteria were not too high, but even so, the amount found could cause serious food poisoning.
A recent study in England
There have been many studies regarding the growth and development of bad bacteria in the households, however a recent study in England looked at the amount of bacteria that grows in and around the bin area – wheelie bins are the most dangerous items in the home when it comes to the breeding of harmful bacteria and viruses. Above shows you the amount of bacteria which develops in a Wheelie Bin after only 2 weeks.
What the Wheelie Bin contained:
Soiled nappies; vegetables and fruit; fish bones and skin; meat bones; newspaper; out-of-date creme fraiche; mushrooms; coffee grounds and a chicken carcass.
If you were to come into contact with Wheelie Bins containing this much bacteria and not practice proper hygiene,
you would almost certainly become ill.
We think this may make you think twice about how often you clean your Wheelie Bin
Ants
Ants only come into your wheelie bins to look for food.
They are attracted to anything that’s sweet and sticky,
Flies
The fly lays eggs, which turn into maggots.
Sometimes, it may seem like the maggots appear from nowhere, but it's just that you didn't notice the fly
Maggots
"Maggot" is another word for larva. After a pupal stage, maggots turn into flies.
Wasps
Open bins will attract greedy wasps looking for a cheap, sweet meal. Keep you bins away from the house and make sure the lid is on properly.
Rats
The most common species within the UK is the common or brown rat, which is physically strong, can jump up to three meters and can squeeze through a gap of less than 2.5 cm. Rats will seek out any environment that provides food, water and shelter.
Foxes
The numbers of foxes living in an area is totally dependant on the availability of food. The more food there is the more foxes there will be. .