South West Water Urges Households and Businesses to Keep Fats Out of Drains This Christmas

South West Water is urging households and food businesses to take simple steps this Christmas to prevent sewer blockages by keeping fats, oils and grease out of sinks and drains.

Over the past year alone, the company cleared more than 7,000 avoidable blockages from its wastewater network, removing around 450 tonnes of waste. Around three quarters of these blockages were caused by just two things: wet wipes and fats, oils and grease, often referred to as FOG.

Why Christmas Makes It Worse

The festive period typically sees more cooking fats and oils being poured away, with the traditional Christmas roast highlighted as a key culprit.

Around 10 million turkeys are eaten each year in the UK. A medium sized turkey produces roughly three quarters of a pint of fat. That adds up to more than 5.6 million litres of fat in total, which is enough to fill over 18,500 bathtubs.

South West Water says blockages thrive on what goes down drains and toilets. Without a steady food supply, they cannot grow.

Simple Festive Tips for Homes

To help keep sewers flowing freely over Christmas, South West Water is asking households to follow a few straightforward tips.

In the bathroom, only flush the three Ps: pee, poo and paper. Everything else, including wipes labelled as flushable, should go in the bin.

In the kitchen, fats, oils and grease should never be poured down the sink. They should be left to cool, scraped or poured into a container, and then placed in the bin or food waste caddy. Food scraps and coffee grounds should also be binned.

Mark Willis, Customer Service & Network Manager for Wastewater Services at South West Water, said: “Christmas is a time for enjoying festive meals and celebrating with family, but it’s also a peak period for fats, oils and grease entering the sewer network.

“By following our simple festive tips at home, households can prevent blockages, protect the environment, and help ensure a worry free Christmas for everyone.”

Advice for Food Businesses

South West Water is also continuing its partnership with environmental compliance experts ECAS, who work with food outlets across the region on safe disposal of fats, oils and grease.

During Unblocktober, the partnership reached a milestone, preventing more than one million litres of FOG from entering the sewer network.

Businesses are being reminded to stay mindful over the festive period, with ECAS offering practical advice, including regularly emptying and maintaining grease traps, dry wiping plates and utensils before washing, using sink strainers for food waste, and avoiding sweeping kitchen floor rubbish into drains.

Once fat in roasting dishes has cooled, it should be scraped into the bin rather than rinsed away. Hot, soapy water can carry grease further down pipes, where it cools, solidifies and can cause blockages.

Marc Downes, Operational Performance Manager at ECAS, said: “We’ve seen firsthand the disruption a blockage can cause to a food business and the potential harm it can do to the environment. The good news is that it can be avoided by adopting good kitchen practices so everyone, including the sewers, can enjoy the festive season.”

By following these festive tips, households and businesses can help reduce the risk of blockages and flooding throughout the Christmas period.