Fats, Oils, and Grease (FOG)

What is FOG?

When you fry bacon, broil hamburgers or bake meat, what remains in your cooking pan is FOG, a real enemy of our sewer system. Substances that, when poured down your drain or into a garbage disposal, will build up over time, constrict the flow of wastewater and eventually cause sewers to back up in your sinks, toilets, and possibly into your own or somebody else's basement. First and foremost, we must reduce the amount of FOG that enters the Village’s sanitary sewage system. 

Please take these simple steps when you’re recycling or disposing of FOG:

• Never pour grease down sinks or toilets.
• Minimize the use of excess cooking oils and grease when cooking or frying.
• The best way to handle used cooking grease is to pour it from the pan while it is still somewhat warm into a container that you can freeze, preferably one you'd have to throw away because it’s not recyclable. (Frozen juice cartons work well because they won't melt when they contact hot grease.) Use a rubber spatula to scrape as much of the grease out of the pan as possible, and then it should only take a disposable paper towel to wipe the pan clean.
• Store the container in the freezer to keep the grease solid. When the container gets full, dispose of the container in the trash.
• Scrape food scraps into the trash. Alternatively, compost food scraps for free at the Town of Red Hook Recycling Center.
• Catch food scraps with baskets or strainers in sink drains and throw scraps in the trash. We encourage you to compost food scraps for free at the Town of Red Hook Recycling Center.

Information about FOG Prevention in Restaurants