Honolulu is letting everyone on Oahu put food scraps in their green cart starting October 1, which is good news for people who want less trash going to the landfill.

• Food scraps can go in the green cart island wide from October 1, at no extra cost and on the same pickup day.
• Scraps must go in loose with no bag — not even bags labeled compostable.
• The rule of thumb: if it grows, it goes, so meat, bones, shells, pasta, coffee grounds, old leftovers and yogurt are all fine.
• Plastic, grease and oil, pet waste, and compostable plates and cups ruin the whole batch and must stay out.
• To keep the cart from smelling, layer yard clippings on the bottom, freeze scraps until the night before pickup, and add baking soda or coffee grounds.

Outlook: Collected scraps head to a recycling facility in Waikele to be turned into compost, and the city is betting more people will take part now that the program is free and island wide.