| 85 The flagship offering, the Grow Pro Full-Service Agronomy Package, delivers comprehensive solutions including crop rotation planning, soil testing and weekly visits. RURAL SERVICES » Molloy Agriculture Ltd For information on the Plasback scheme, or to book a collection contact Plasback on 0508 338 240 or visit www.plasback.co.nz FOR FARMERS & GROWERS RECYCLING SOLUTIONS R North and Mid Canterbury collection partner for Plasback, Molloy Agriculture, is now collecting record amounts of farm plastic waste, indicative both of the company’s quality service and of Canterbury farmers’ increasing desire to participate in the voluntary product stewardship scheme. Plasback recovers used farm plastics for recycling with a bin and liner system and on-farm collection across the country. Founded in 2006 by Agpac, one of the biggest providers of plastic into the New Zealand market, Plasback was established to deal with the resulting waste issue. Plasback now has an international owner, Tama, which participates in mandatory and voluntary collection schemes around the world and maintains international best practices to reduce plastic waste. Plasback commercial manager Neal Shaw says farmers are getting ahead of the game by voluntarily recycling their agricultural plastics ahead of it becoming mandatory. “There are a couple of reasons for the growth of the Plasback scheme prior to the mandating of agricultural plastic recycling,” he says. “Fonterra’s Co-operative Difference Scheme is a big one, where shareholders are rewarded for sustainable practices, including the recycling of their silage wrap. But also, a growing social conscience and greater environmental awareness means farmers want to do the right thing.” When farm plastic recycling does become mandatory, manufacturers who sell agricultural products with plastic packaging will be paying a fee to an official scheme for the collection and processing of their waste. This fee is likely to be passed on in the price of the product, so any farmer choosing to burn or bury their plastic waste after that will be continuing to contribute to environmental issues. Plasback now has a reliable nationwide network of 13 independent collection contractors and nine purpose built balers designed to improve transport logistics from the main centres to the recycling plants. Plasback customers are interested in traceability and they want to know where their plastic waste ends up. 20% is recycled in New Zealand and because the water and energy cost of recycling is prohibitive here, 80% is sent overseas as a genuine export product to countries whose recycling efforts are subsidised by their governments. In New Zealand, Plasback is making sustainable products for the agricultural industry entirely from recycled plastics. Tuffboard is a plywood replacement product and Tuffdeck is a non-slip surfacing tile. These products are durable and quick to install, non-abrasive, lick proof, chew proof, rust proof and 100% recycled. Better outcomes one farm at a time
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