Province of Limburg, Belgium

What was done

Limburg.net, the inter-municipal waste authority for the Belgian province of Limburg (plus the city of Diest), runs a long-standing "Kippenactie" (hen campaign) encouraging households to keep laying hens that consume kitchen and garden waste. Belgian municipalities have run such schemes since at least 2010 (Mouscron); the city of Diest distributed hens to thousands of families in the mid-2000s, and Limburg.net operates the campaign at province scale, recurring year after year.

The notable design difference from the French model: rather than free distribution events, Limburg.net runs it through a voucher and loyalty-points system. Residents redeem points (via the LimbU rewards scheme — e.g. 6.25 points per voucher) or buy discounted vouchers, then collect their hens from participating garden centres and pet shops. This piggybacks on existing retail rather than the authority procuring and handing out birds itself.

Results and figures

• Reported uptake is large: in Limburg, over 2,500 families adopted hens in a single year, according to multiple press accounts.
• Limburg.net's own guidance states a hen can process up to 50 kg of kitchen and garden waste per year, and up to 150 g per day.
• Participation conditions: residents need a garden with enough space, must commit to proper poultry care, and (as in other Belgian schemes) agree not to slaughter the hens for a minimum period.

What a replicating authority should know

• A voucher/retail model is a real alternative to distribution-day logistics. Letting residents redeem a voucher at existing garden centres and pet shops removes the need to procure, house and hand out birds on a fixed day — lower operational burden, year-round availability.
• Tie it to an existing rewards scheme if you have one. Limburg.net plugs hens into its LimbU loyalty-points system, so the hen campaign reuses infrastructure already built for other waste-prevention incentives.
• Be conservative in messaging. Limburg.net advertises ~50 kg/hen/year — markedly lower than the "150 kg/hen" figure used elsewhere — and explicitly tells residents hens are "not rubbish bins" but social animals needing care. Honest, modest framing protects both welfare and credibility.
• Set a space rule and a no-slaughter commitment. Belgian schemes consistently require a minimum garden area and a 1–2 year keeping commitment, which screens out unsuitable or casual applicants.

Honest reading

Outcome recorded as ongoing: this is a recurring province-scale campaign. The "2,500 families in a year" figure comes from press reporting rather than an audited authority statistic, and the waste-diversion claims (50 kg/hen/year) are capacity estimates, not measured tonnages — no before/after diversion audit appears to be published for this scheme.