The county-wide weekly food recycling service, which was launched in Stafford Borough last month, is off to a successful start according to recent figures.

Roll-out of the scheme across Staffordshire began in March.

Stafford Borough along with East Staffordshire and Cannock Chase were among the first areas to see collections start.

In preparation for the new service, around 60,000 properties across Staffordshire received two new containers for food waste, a seven-litre caddy for indoor use and a 23-litre kerbside caddy.

Newly released data shows that many locals are embracing the caddies with 801 tonnes of food waste collected during April across the operational districts and boroughs.

Collections began in Stafford Borough on 13 April with more than 246 tonnes of food waste recycled by residents in the first two weeks.

Stafford bin crews had to carry out extra collections to keep up with demand, a clear demonstration of how quickly people are incorporating the new service into daily life.

Significant amounts of waste have been diverted from general rubbish and transformed into electricity and fertisliser.

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Andrew Mynors, Cabinet Member for Connectivity at Staffordshire County Council, said: "It is fantastic to see such a positive response from residents in the first areas where the new food waste recycling service has launched.

"Early take-up has exceeded expectations and shows that people are willing to make small changes at home that can have a big impact across the county.

"Every banana skin, tea bag, plate scraping or leftover that goes into a food waste caddy instead of the general rubbish bin helps us recycle more and reduce waste. We want to thank residents who are already using the service and encourage them to keep going every week.

"This is just the start.

"The early response shows real momentum, but the biggest difference will come from residents continuing to use their caddies week after week."

The scheme will soon be launched in South Staffordshire, Staffordshire Moorlands, Lichfield and Tamworth.

For more information about the service or collection times, click here.