With the recycling industry in turmoil, it is now more important than ever that Kiwis reduce their consumption of single-use plastic, which is why New Zealand’s waste and recycling industry body, WasteMINZ, is urging Kiwis to go single-use plastic-free this July.

WasteMINZ CEO Paul Evans is encouraging Kiwis to embrace the Plastic Free July campaign, a global movement which calls on people to #ChooseToRefuse single-use plastics.

“With the current recycling crisis here in Aotearoa and stockpiles of plastics around the country there is no better time to turn awareness of plastic waste into universal action,” says Evans.

Last year the focus of Plastic Free July was to reduce the top four single-use items: plastic shopping bags, water bottles, straws and takeaway coffee cups. Since then, pressure from both the public and industry has seen many retailers, including both major supermarket chains in New Zealand committing to go plastic bag free.

Other businesses such as Wagamama and bars and restaurants on the Wellington waterfront have gone plastic straw free.

“While we have seen massive improvements over the last 12 months we still have a long way to go,” said Evans.

“For those people who have already swapped their disposable coffee cup for a reusable cup or are bringing their own reusable bags to get groceries, we are encouraging them to take that next step and consider cutting down on other types of single-use plastic packaging. It might be switching to soap or shampoo bars instead of using bottled wash products. Making your own cordial instead of buying fizzy drinks or baking your own bread. The campaign is a great time to get creative with how you can reduce your single-use plastic usage and share ideas with others.”

Plastic Free July started in Western Australia in 2011. Founded by Rebecca Prince-Ruiz, it is now a worldwide campaign with more than 2 million participants in 159 countries.

“Virtually every piece of plastic ever manufactured still exists in some form today,” said Prince-Ruiz.

“Plastic, particularly single-use plastic or ‘throw-away’ plastic items, are not getting recycled effectively and are having a detrimental impact on our environment.”

To participate in the Plastic Free July campaign this year, sign-up to the challenge on the website www.plasticfreejuly.org to access resources to help you reduce your plastic usage.

Join in on social media at Plastic Free July Aotearoa

Plastic Free July Foundation’s top tips to #ChooseToRefuse this July:

• Take a reusable coffee cup with you to get your caffeine fix on the go

• Avoid plastic packed products – choose loose produce and products in paper packaging

• Bring reusable bags to do your grocery shopping

• Bulk buy or get re-fills where possible

• Use beeswax wraps, or a reusable container, to keep your produce fresh and plastic-free

Ends

Plastic Free July events happening around Aotearoa:

• 3 July, Christchurch: Learn How To Make Beeswax Wraps. Make your own beeswax wraps and sandwich bags so you can say goodbye to cling wrap.

• 4 July, Auckland: Zero Waste Your Kitchen. Learn how to de-waste your kitchen in this interactive workshop led by Kristy Lorson, founder of the popular Zero Waste in NZ Facebook group. Kristy will show you all her zero-waste grocery shopping, storage and cooking tips and tricks.

• 7 July, Nationwide: Boomerang Bag Working Bee. New Zealand currently has 76 Boomerang Bag communities that sew reusable bags from materials destined for landfill. The working bee aims to make 1,000 bags in one day. These bags will then be available in local shopping centres for people to use on those days when they forget to bring a reusable bag with them.
• 19 July, Auckland: Bea Johnson dubbed “The Priestess of Waste-Free Living” by the New York Times, and arguably the world’s leading spokesperson for the zero-waste lifestyle will be speaking at a public event.

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