Sydney shop owner fined $45,000 after dumping 25 pallets of expired pickles, chips and hummus

A southwest Sydney business has been slapped with a hefty fine after being busted illegally dumping mounds of expired food including hummus, pickles and chips. See the illegal dumping hotspots.

A southwest Sydney local business has been slapped with a hefty fine after it was busted for illegally dumping mounds of expired food.

On September 29 the shop owner, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was spotted driving a forklift and dumping 25 pallets worth of expired food items – including pickles, dried fruit, bags of chips and numerous smashed jars of hummus – on the roadway outside an industrial complex at Villawood.

Following public tip-offs, the owner was fined a whopping $45,000 after failing to comply with a clean-up notice issued by the Canterbury Bankstown Council.

Mayor Bilal El-Hayek said he was appalled by the actions of the business owner.

A Canterbury-Bankstown local business owner has been slapped with a $45,000 fine after dumping 25 pallets, containing expired foods, outside an industrial complex in Villawood. Picture: Supplied

“He had no shame, dumping his waste in broad daylight for everyone on the street to see,” Mr El-Hayek said.

“We will not tolerate people who treat our streets like a tip.”

The council said at least two trucks and six council workers were required to clean up the mess “at a considerable cost”.

It comes as a council report identified 14 “hotspot” areas with high levels of illegal dumping including Campsie’s ‘The Avenues’, Canterbury Bankstown Hospital block, and Lakemba’s McDonalds block.

In 2022, council received 16,221 reports of illegal dumping – 6686 received within a 14 week period.

Smashed jars of hummus were among copious piles of expired food dumped illegally at Villawood. Picture: Supplied

However a council report revealed a state-funded anti-dumping program and council’s wildly successful ‘Eyes On It’ campaign had seen illegal dumping reduced by up to 54 per cent on average and up to 88 per cent in some high-level dumping areas.

Through the campaign, the city has installed 50 24/7 hour surveillance cameras used to identify and target people who dump rubbish illegally.

In the 2023-24 financial year, 306 penalty notices were issued for illegal dumping offences – generating $495,000 in fines revenue.

Canterbury Bankstown Council is also the first city in NSW to trial new AI-powered cameras mounted to street sweepers able to identify rubbish piles and abandoned trolleys.

A trial program using AI cameras mounted to street sweepers will be used to crackdown on illegal dumping across Canterbury-Bankstown city. Picture: Supplied

In July, the city was applauded by the NSW Environment Protection Authority for its leading anti-dumping campaign.

However without sustained government funding, the long-term success of the programs is at risk.

“The (Clean City Dumping Prevention Program) has resulted in significant and sustained reductions in the dumping hotspots they target,” the council report said.

“However, the current staffing levels are inadequate to deal with the scale of the issue and the existing grant funding for this program will run out at the end of 2024.

“Without certainty around the program’s future, planning for long-term consolidation of progress is restricted.”

A council spokesperson confirmed despite attempts to secure ongoing government funding, the council was only able to secure one-off partial funding for its current anti-dumping programs.

Illegal dumping hotspots

• Campsie “The Avenues”

• Campsie Block 1

• Campsie Block 2

• Canterbury Bankstown Hospital Block

• Chester Hill Block

• Bankstown Chapel Rd Block

• Bankstown Jacob Street Surrounds

• Bankstown Meredith St Block

• Belmore Block

• Lakemba MacDonald Block

• Riverwood Housing Estate

• Villawood Urana Housing

• Wiley Park The Parks Block

• Wiley Park Denman Block