increase font size
Associate Minister for the Environment Eugenie Sage (middle-right) with Agrecovery board and staff.
A new project launched this week provides farmers alternatives to the harmful disposal practices of burning, burying and stock-piling of waste.
The New Zealand Rural Waste Minimisation Project was launched at the South Island Agricultural Field Days in Kirwee by Associate Minister for the Environment Eugenie Sage.
Rural recycling programme Agrecovery will implement the Project by offering nationwide events for farmers to sustainably dispose of waste all in one go. This will clear agrichemical and motor oil containers, unwanted agrichemicals, used motor oil, fertiliser bags and silage wrap.
“By providing a ‘one-stop-shop approach’, we will be removing barriers to recycling and encouraging our rural communities to participate in sustainable disposal practices for a variety of waste,” says Agrecovery board chair Adrienne Wilcock.
The Agrecovery Foundation started in 2007, setting its sights to clear plastic agrichemical containers and drums from farms and orchards around the country. The agrichemical industry chose to fund the programme so its waste could be made into useful products within New Zealand. The programme also sustainably disposes of unwanted agrichemicals.
Sage says that businesses must take responsibility for their products throughout their whole life cycle. “Both voluntary and mandatory product stewardship is essential to ensure resources are managed sensibly. Agrecovery has long recognised this and started one of the earliest voluntary product stewardship schemes. There have been a few in the industry who haven’t participated in the process and it is clear that government intervention may be necessary.
“That is why I instructed officials to begin investigations into Mandatory Product Stewardship for four waste streams. All producers have a responsibility to the environment to minimise the harm that their products have, and one way to ensure this is through mandatory product stewardship.”
The project builds upon two trial events held last year which collected almost 20 tonnes of rural waste. “Solving waste issues by providing a service that deals with waste all in one go was supported by farmers who participated in the events,” says Wilcock.
“It is critical that we take responsibility for all plastics used on farms - which have long been problematic - and meet these challenges head-on.”
Agrecovery has high ambitions to clear more rural waste by partnering with industry groups, product stewardship schemes and councils around the country to make it easier for rural communities to recycle.
The future of New Zealand’s agricultural sector grew a little brighter, with the South Island Agricultural Field Days (SIAFD) now accepting applications for its scholarships through Lincoln University, offering $10,500 to up to six exceptional students who are poised to become the next leaders in the primary industries.
OPINION: For the first time in many years, a commonsense approach is emerging to balance environmental issues with the need for the nation's primary producers to be able to operate effectively.
Rakaia-based equipment manufacturer Pluck’s Engineering will soon start production of a new machine designed to simplify the deployment and retrieval of temporary water troughs used in winter break feeding.
Among the regular exhibitors at last month’s South Island Agricultural Field Days, the one that arguably takes the most intensive preparation every time is the PGG Wrightson Seeds site.
Taking up a considerable portion of the Power Farming site at the recent South Island Agricultural Field Days near Christchurch, the Kverneland Qualidisc 21000T trailed compact disc harrow, the first sold in the southern hemisphere, has a working width of 12.25m.
Phoebe Scherer, a technical manager from the Bay of Plenty, has won the 2025 Young Grower of the Year national title.
The Fencing Contractors Association of New Zealand (FCANZ) celebrated the best of the best at the 2025 Fencing Industry Awards, providing the opportunity to honour both rising talent and industry stalwarts.
Award-winning boutique cheese company, Cranky Goat Ltd has gone into voluntary liquidation.
As an independent review of the National Pest Management Plan for TB finds the goal of complete eradication by 2055 is still valide, feedback is being sought on how to finish the job.
Beef + Lamb New Zealand has launched an AI-powered digital assistant to help farmers using the B+LNZ Knowledge Hub to create tailored answers and resources for their farming businesses.
A tiny organism from the arid mountains of mainland Greece is facilitating a new way of growing healthier animals on farms across New Zealand.
