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Mid and East Antrim bin collection days

Mid and East Antrim collects the black residual bin and the brown food and garden bin every two weeks. Dry recycling is still split by area. Ballymena and Carrickfergus have weekly kerbside boxes, collected by Bryson Recycling. Larne has a fortnightly blue bin and a glass caddy. A co-mingled blue bin for the whole borough is expected in 2026/27, and the council says there is no planned change to the black or brown bin.

Last checked against 7 sources (www.midandeastantrim.gov.uk).

What goes in each bin

Black bin for residual waste · General waste

Bin · Every two weeks

Yes please

  • Pet droppings and litter
  • Plastic bags, soft plastic such as bread packaging, toothpaste tubes and Pringles tubes

Not in this one

  • Garden waste, which goes in the brown bin
  • Food waste, which goes in the brown bin
  • DIY waste such as rubble, paint cans and plasterboard, which goes to a household recycling centre
  • Recycling, which goes in the blue bin in Larne or in kerbside boxes in Ballymena and Carrickfergus
  • Side waste, unless the council has made an exception for bad weather, a breakdown or a road closure

Source: www.midandeastantrim.gov.uk (opens in a new tab), read

Blue bin in Larne, or kerbie boxes in Ballymena and Carrickfergus · Mixed recycling

Bin · Varies by area, so check your address

Yes please

  • In the Larne blue bin: aerosols, cartons, cardboard, foil, food tins and drink cans, and paper such as catalogues, envelopes, junk mail, phone books and newspapers
  • Plastic bottles, margarine tubs, detergent bottles and yoghurt pots, clean and flattened
  • In Ballymena and Carrickfergus boxes: cardboard and paper in one box, and aerosols, foil, cartons, plastic bottles, pots, tubs and trays in another
  • Textiles, clean and dry, tied in a bag and left beside the boxes

Not in this one

  • From the Larne blue bin page: plastic bags, nappies, batteries of any kind, vapes, gas cylinders or canisters, electronic equipment and full aerosol cans
  • Pyrex in the Larne glass caddy
  • Food or drink left in the recycling

Source: www.midandeastantrim.gov.uk (opens in a new tab), read

Glass caddy in Larne, or a glass box in Ballymena and Carrickfergus · Glass

Box

Yes please

  • Mixed glass bottles and jars, including beer bottles, coffee jars, jam jars, sauce jars, glass makeup containers, perfume bottles and wine and spirit bottles

Not in this one

  • Pyrex

Source: www.midandeastantrim.gov.uk (opens in a new tab), read

Brown bin and kitchen caddy for food waste · Food waste

Caddy · Every two weeks

Yes please

  • Cooked and raw food scraps, fish, meat and bones, peelings, seeds, pips, cores, mouldy food, dairy, bread, cakes and pastries
  • Tea bags, coffee grounds and egg shells, in a liner, then tied and put in the brown bin
  • Cooking oil such as vegetable oil or olive oil, which the brown bin page lists separately

Not in this one

  • Pet waste, including cats, dogs, hamsters and horse manure
  • Plastic bags
  • Japanese knotweed and giant hogweed

Source: www.midandeastantrim.gov.uk (opens in a new tab), read

Brown bin for garden waste · Garden waste

Bin · Every two weeks

Yes please

  • Cuttings and prunings, flowers, grass, hedge trimmings, leaves, sawdust and wood chips, twigs, bark and weeds
  • Cold ashes
  • Takeaway pizza boxes, which the brown bin page lists with the accepted items

Not in this one

  • Soil, rubble and stones
  • Cardboard and packaging of any sort, which the same page also lists as refused
  • Plastic bags, pet waste, and invasive non-native plants

Source: www.midandeastantrim.gov.uk (opens in a new tab), read

Check your bin day

We can’t check Mid and East Antrim addresses yet

Live bin day lookups for Mid and East Antrim are planned. Until then, Mid and East Antrim’s own page will show your collection day.

Find my bin day on www.midandeastantrim.gov.uk(opens in a new tab)

Set your own bin day

These dates are the ones you enter. BinWeek does not get them from Mid and East Antrim. Check them on the council’s site (opens in a new tab) (www.midandeastantrim.gov.uk).

Black bin for residual waste · General waste

The council’s pages say this is collected every two weeks. Your round may differ, so use the pattern you were given.

Blue bin in Larne, or kerbie boxes in Ballymena and Carrickfergus · Mixed recycling
Glass caddy in Larne, or a glass box in Ballymena and Carrickfergus · Glass
Brown bin and kitchen caddy for food waste · Food waste

The council’s pages say this is collected every two weeks. Your round may differ, so use the pattern you were given.

Brown bin for garden waste · Garden waste

The council’s pages say this is collected every two weeks. Your round may differ, so use the pattern you were given.

Add to calendar

A private calendar link for the pattern you entered, with an alert at 6pm the evening before. The link contains those days. BinWeek does not keep a copy, and anyone with the link can see them.

Email me the night before

You can still add these days to your calendar.

How often each bin is collected

Collection frequency by bin for Mid and East Antrim
BinCollected
Black bin for residual waste · General wasteEvery two weeks
Blue bin in Larne, or kerbie boxes in Ballymena and Carrickfergus · Mixed recyclingVaries by area, so check your address
Brown bin and kitchen caddy for food waste · Food wasteEvery two weeks
Brown bin for garden waste · Garden wasteEvery two weeks

Garden waste

Garden waste is collected free of charge. The brown bin collection is part of the household service. The bins and boxes page says residents are entitled to two 240L brown bins. Home composters can be bought from the council for £5.51. Garden waste and food waste share the brown bin on a fortnightly collection. Compostable caddy liners are provided free twice a year, in April and October.

Source: www.midandeastantrim.gov.uk (opens in a new tab), read

If your bin was missed

Report a missed bin on the council's Waste Dashboard. Missed bins are normally collected within 1 to 2 working days, weather permitting. A Friday miss is collected early the following week. Bryson Recycling empties the Ballymena and Carrickfergus kerbie boxes: a report before noon is collected the same day, and an afternoon report the next working day. The Waste Helpdesk is 0300 124 5000, option 0. Bryson Recycling is 028 9084 8494.

Source: www.midandeastantrim.gov.uk (opens in a new tab), read

Good to know in Mid and East Antrim

  • Put bins and boxes out by 7am. Kerbie boxes should stay out until 8pm. Lids stay closed. Side waste is left, except in bad weather, a breakdown or a road closure. Handles face the road.
  • The brown bin page accepts takeaway pizza boxes, then says cardboard and packaging of any sort cannot go in. It also says any material which is not green waste or food waste is refused, while listing cold ashes, shredded paper, kitchen roll and cooking oil as accepted. Those clashes are on the page.
  • The Larne blue bin page lists paper, card, cans, plastics and cartons as accepted, and also says any material which is not plastic cannot go in. The specific list is the one used here. Glass is still a separate caddy in Larne, and the page says no Pyrex.
  • Larne residents are entitled to two 240L blue bins as well as two 240L brown bins. The kerbie box page says the colour of the box does not matter. Box 1 is cardboard and paper, box 2 is aerosols, foil, cartons and plastics, and box 3 is glass bottles and jars.
  • Compostable liners are delivered on presented black bins in the week commencing 13 April 2026 in Ballymena, and the week commencing 20 April 2026 in Carrickfergus and Larne. If a roll does not arrive, tell the helpdesk within 2 weeks. Extra liners can be bought at supermarkets or at Larne Market Yard, the Braid, Seven Towers Leisure Centre and Carrickfergus Town Hall.
  • A recycling bin with the wrong materials is not emptied, and a sticker is put on the lid. The same happens for an open lid, ropes, a broken lid or wheels, a bin that is too heavy, or the wrong bin.
  • Bin collection dates are on the council's own address search. Ballymena and Carrickfergus Bryson days are on the Bryson Recycling website. Bank holiday changes are on the council's alternative collection dates page. The bin pages say household recycling centre access has changed and point to an HRC online page. That booking page was not used for this entry.
  • Once the co-mingled service starts, the council says Larne can put glass in the blue bin and will not need the caddy insert. Ballymena and Carrickfergus can keep their boxes, but the boxes will no longer be used for recycling.

Bin questions in Mid and East Antrim

How often are bins collected in Mid and East Antrim?

The black bin and the brown food and garden bin are fortnightly. Kerbside boxes in Ballymena and Carrickfergus are weekly. The Larne blue bin is fortnightly.

What is changing about recycling bins?

The council expects a co-mingled blue bin, a 240 litre bin for dry recycling including glass, to be rolled out in 2026/27. Black and brown collections are not part of that change. Ballymena and Carrickfergus households are due a new bin. Larne keeps the blue bin it has.

How do I report a missed bin?

Use the Waste Dashboard. The council says a missed bin is normally collected within 1 to 2 working days. For Bryson kerbie boxes, a report before noon is the same day and an afternoon report is the next working day.

What goes in the kerbie boxes?

In Ballymena and Carrickfergus, one box is for cardboard and paper, another for aerosols, foil, cartons and plastic bottles, pots, tubs and trays, and another for glass bottles and jars. Textiles go in a separate bag. The council says the colour of the box does not matter. Put them out by 7am and leave them until 8pm.

When are compostable caddy liners delivered?

Free liners are provided in April and October. In 2026 the council lists the week commencing 13 April 2026 for Ballymena and the week commencing 20 April 2026 for Carrickfergus and Larne, left with black bins that are put out.

Guides that may help

Nearby councils