A quick easy win
Burning or burying agrichemicals and their packaging on-property isn’t farming for our future.
Not only has it been proven harmful to health and the environment, but our markets and consumers in general are now expecting more sustainable farming practices.
We know that the majority of farmers and growers in New Zealand are proud guardians of their land; aiming to leave a positive legacy for their families and for other New Zealanders.
Win-win
Choose a quick easy win to improve sustainability on your property:
- FREE container recycling nationwide
- FREE on-property collection of large drums and IBCs
- FREE or subsidised agrichemical disposal
Waste to resource
It’s not just about the environment…
Plastic containers and drums which are dumped or burned are a waste of resources. Recycling that plastic in New Zealand reduces the requirement to manufacture and import virgin plastic.
Figures released by Crop Life International show that container management programmes like Agrecovery, running in over 58 countries worldwide, recovered 781,429 tonnes of plastic between 2005 and 2017.
Not only can this plastic be recycled into a variety of useful products, but using 781,429 tonnes of recycled plastic vs new plastic saves 6,656,269 cubic metres of landfill space.
Even more importantly, this recycled plastic equates to an energy saving of 1,469 million litres of petrol, equivalent to removing 268,322 cars from the road.
Every tonne of recycled plastic saves around 6,000 kilowatt-hours of energy.
What about here in NZ?
In 2020 Agrecovery reached 3 million kg of container plastic recycled since the programme started in 2007:
- Equivalent to 25,500 cubic metres of farm dumps
- Energy saving equivalent to 5.625 million litres of petrol
- Equivalent to 18,000 kilowatt-hours of energy
So, next time you think about what to do with your empty containers, consider making that plastic go another round…
Market expectations
What do consumers expect?
You may not be in direct contact with the end consumers of your products, but demand, pricing and quality expectations through the supply chain are determined by what is important to them.
In an article about their Farm Excellence (FarmEx) programme Westland Milk Products’ chief executive Rod Quin says:
“Customers increasingly want transparency, traceability and accountability in all areas.
“Naturally their focus is on food safety and the quality of our products, but they also want assurances on our performance in such areas as environmental protection and sustainability, animal welfare, employment conditions and even the aesthetic appearance of the farm property itself.”
Many quality assurance programmes ask for proof of safe disposal of chemicals and their packaging to prove good environmental practice to their customers. Agrecovery makes this easy with Smart Member Services, a simple online database which allows you to download proof of your recycling activity.
Become a member of Agrecovery
Join over 10,000 farmers and growers using Agrecovery services!
You become a member:
- by registering on our website,
- when you first visit a collection site, or
- when you make a booking.
Using your membership number gives easy access to all services and enables you to update your contact information or run a report of your recycling activity.
We’ll also keep you informed of any programme improvements or news, such as site changes or upcoming collections. (You can opt out of contact at any time!)
Become an Agrecovery member! You can…
- Book disposal of your chemicals
- Book collection of your large drums
- Download reports of your recycling
- Receive updates on collection sites and events in your region
- Remove paperwork at collection sites with a member key tag
Agrecovery membership is free.
Support our brand owners
Providing you with free recycling and recovery…
The voluntary levies, paid by the 60+ manufacturers and distributors of agrichemical, animal health and dairy hygiene products, enables Agrecovery to provide recycling programmes to farmers and growers free of charge.
These companies show a commendable commitment to product stewardship by helping you, their customers, responsibly dispose of your leftover chemicals and packaging through the Agrecovery programme. Please support them by purchasing their products over those who don’t support Agrecovery.
Look out for the Agrecovery logo on products – this shows you that the product or it’s packaging can generally be recycled / recovered for free.
Check out our brand owners
