Rural recycling programme - Agrecovery demonstrates how industry and government can work together to reduce plastic waste and clear unwanted agrichemicals from our environment. At an industry event with Conservation and Associate Environment Minister, Eugenie Sage, the programme explains its success in clearing more waste from New Zealand farms.
Agrecovery has diverted over 2,000 tonnes of plastic from landfill or from harmful disposal practices like burning. As the programme gains force, recovery rates rise - with a 40 percent increase in the amount of plastic collected in the last year alone.
The not-for-profit’s sole focus is enabling New Zealand’s rural communities to have access to convenient recycling for repurposing plastic waste as well as the recovery of unwanted agrichemicals.
“We’re not making ...
“Put a recycling container in it” says Rick. He thought that would be the best way to go, because the Agrecovery team collect and recycle the drums, and it meant he was doing the right thing. Rick’s team at Central Spraying Services Ltd picks up empty drums from farms when they are doing spray work. “We just throw theirs on board too and put them into our container. It’s easy!” says Rick. Other agricultural contractors in the area also drop their drums off at his yard. Rick uses lots of drums and doesn’t think it’s right to get rid of them any other way. “Digging a big hole and burying or burning them is not environmentally viable, especially when Agrecovery ...
Farmers are coming under far more scrutiny these days by regulators and the public says Peter Thomson of Agrispray and Equipment in Mosgiel. Agrispray run a specialist agrichemical and spray machinery retail business and host the local Agrecovery collection site. Sales and Technical Manager, Peter, believes responsible disposal of spray containers is paramount for their business: “It’s just good stewardship”. As suppliers to a wide range of industries, Agrispray and Equipment Limited deal with most agrichemical users. “Our industry tries to follow the principles of responsible and effective use of agrichemicals. I think recycling fits into that quite well as does hosting the recycling site,” says Peter. He has been in the industry since 1974 and recalls the transition from ...
Wanganui Farm Supplies have been an Agrecovery container drop-off point since 2010. Manager, Scott Morpeth recalls that when they were approached by Agrecovery, they thought it was a such a good idea they didn’t hesitate to get involved. Established in 1987, Wanganui Farm Supplies is a well-known rural retail outlet. They service the equestrian market, plus sheep, beef and dairy farmers and the horticultural industry. “Farmers can now recycle their plastic containers whenever we’re open,” says Scott. “Six days a week is a lot more convenient than 3 hours once a month like the old days.” The Agrecovery programme means farmers no longer need to have containers lying around on their farms, nor do they have to burn them, or ...
Farmers and growers across New Zealand can feel proud of their collective efforts to reduce burning and burying of agricultural plastics, according to rural recyclers Agrecovery. “We’re now in our tenth year of operations and the numbers prove that farmers will make good environmental choices if they have accessible options for their farm waste,” says Adrienne Wilcock, chair of Agrecovery Foundation and herself a dairy farmer. “Together with contractors, growers and other users of agrichemicals, farmers have recycled 1.4 million kilograms of plastic containers and safely disposed of 100,000 kilograms of unwanted chemicals. “In the past these options simply weren’t available, but Agrecovery proves that if it’s there, they will use it.” Agrecovery provides recycling and recovery for chemicals and ...
Winning isn’t new for Marlborough’s Marisco Vineyards, but it’s normally their wine that wins, not their recycling activity. Farmers and growers who recycled their containers and drums with Agrecovery during a four month period were entered into a $5000 travel prize draw. Anton Rasmussen, Marisco’s General Manager for Viticulture, was very happy to hear they had won. “Most of our wines are sold internationally so the prize will be a huge help for owner Brent Marris and his team travelling overseas to promote the Marisco brand. “We’ve been using Agrecovery since it started so it’s a nice pay off for doing something we believe in.” Legacy is an important element for Marisco Vineyards: “We have nearly 2400 ha over four ...
Agrecovery Rural Recycling is seeing yellow since GEA FIL joined the recycling programme in early 2015. The industry-good recycling programme now has 64 participating brands and offers recycling for all sizes of containers, drums and IBCs, plus recovery of unwanted or expired agrichemicals. “We joined Agrecovery as soon as they started collecting large drums on-farm, as part of our ongoing commitment to offer a higher level of service to our customers,” said Jamie Mikkelson of GEA FIL. And it seems GEA FIL customers have grabbed the free recycling opportunity with both hands. “Over a quarter of the large drums we collect on-farm are FIL, and bookings are increasing all the time,” says Duncan Scotland of Agrecovery. As well as collecting ...
We all win… Recycling with Agrecovery benefits everyone in New Zealand because it helps protect our environment now and into the future. Recycling reduces the harm caused by burning and burying plastics and other items on-farm, and also enables collected plastic to be recycled into new uses. All the plastic we collect is processed in New Zealand and turned into underground cable cover. But you can win more with a total prize pool of $7,500! Everybody who undertakes an activity with Agrecovery before the end of March 2016 will automatically enter the draw to win a $5000 family holiday to the Pacific Island of your choice! If that’s not a good reason to get started, we don’t know what is. ...
3R Group, programme managers for Agrecovery, are proud to announce the arrival of their latest plastic processing unit, affectionately known as “The Granulator”. (Say it like Arnie would…) 3R has been innovating in the area of mobile processing vehicles ever since they started back in 2004 with paint processing trucks (winner of a Green Ribbon Award) and a mobile plastic shredding truck which has covered the Agrecovery run since 2007. The Granulator applies the best of their learnings of the past ten years with a range of features designed to maximise efficiency and throughput. Trailer mounted, meaning that it can be towed by any suitable truck without affecting the truck’s load capacity. Self-powered using a diesel genset, so can operate ...
Nine successive years of growth for Agrecovery Rural Recycling show that farmers and growers across the country are continuing to increase their sustainable recycling practices. Provisional results for the year ending June 2015 stand at 15,495kg of unwanted chemicals and 240,732kg of recycled plastic packaging collected by the industry good programme. This reflects a 50% jump in container recycling over a two year period. According to Adrienne Wilcock, Chair and Dairy NZ trustee on the Agrecovery Foundation, it was also a year of milestones for Agrecovery. “We exceeded one million kilograms of container plastic recycled since our 2007 launch and we now have over 10,000 farmer and grower members, one of whom won a new Suzuki motorbike in our recent ...
