Friday 1st May

Wild OATS (Orchestral anti-Absurd Packaging Travelling Show) on tour

A message to reduce packaging could be a bit dull, but not in the hands of Wild OATS – Get Real’s band of actors, DJs and poets.

Wild OATS will be performing in towns around the South Island and lower North Island during the next two weeks. The final performance will be on the steps of Parliament on May 15th.

The street theatre is a mixture of rap, dance music, poetry and skits, written to highlight absurd packaging.

“Stop Absurd Packaging” is Get Real’s second campaign, following the success of campaign #1: “No Free Plastic Bags”.

“Hopefully Wild OATS will be entertaining as well as thought-provoking,” said Ivy Willmott, actor and stage manager. Ivy has previously stage-managed opera, dance and orchestra tours around UK and Europe.

“We want to show that an environmental campaign can be fun, as well as worthy. People can have a laugh at the absurdity of packaging, be entertained and take action at the same time.

“We’ll have an open letter to sign, and we’ll be collecting the most-hated pieces of packaging for a grand action at the end of the campaign.”

Wild OATS will be performing in main streets, at farmers’ markets and on university campuses.

If people don’t get to see Wild OATS perform, they can support GetReal’s “Stop Absurd Packaging” campaign by signing the open letter at www.getreal.org.nz

“We’re asking people for just a couple of minutes of their time, to go to our website and be part of making change,” said GetReal campaigner Sue Coutts.

“Pretty much everyone you talk to has a pet hate when it comes to packaging. But it can seem too hard to get things changed as an individual.

“That’s why we set up GetReal, to harness the power of all the individuals who care and make real change.”

“It’s not that all packaging is bad,” she said. “But so much packaging is completely excessive and over-the-top. Do we need to individually wrap dried apricots? Get real! Of course we don’t.”

“Why are we putting juice and soy milk in non-recyclable tetra-pak cartons? There are much better options, but there is no pressure on companies to make a good choice.

“Most companies only think about what looks good on the shelf and what will increase their profits. They don’t have to worry about what happens to all that packaging once it leaves the shop.”

Ms Coutts, who is the general manager of Wanaka Wastebusters, said recycling centres and rubbish contractors are left to clean up the mess, and councils have to pay for it.

“It’s one of those crazy situations where we all pay through rates to clean up someone else’s mess. GetReal wants to make companies to take responsibility for their own packaging rubbish by getting a product stewardship scheme in place for packaging.

“The best way to make companies take responsibility for their packaging choices is to get packaging put back on the Priority Products List under the Waste Minimisation Act (2008). If that happened, a product stewardship scheme would have to be accredited for packaging.

“We have until May 15th, when submissions close on the way the Government is planning to implement the act."

Currently there are only three products on the Priority Products List: use oil, refrigerant gases and agricultural chemicals.

"We have the legislation, but the Government is trying to take its teeth out. New Zealanders should be smart and not let that happen.

"I encourage everyone to put their own submission in as well as supporting Get Real's open letter. We have links to show how to put in a submission on our website. Tell the Government you want that you want to see an end to absurd packaging and why."

“Don’t try telling me that a voluntary product stewardship scheme is going to solve all the problems we have with packaging,” said Ms Coutts. “We’ve had the Packaging Accord in place since 2004, and it’s been ineffective.

“There is some packaging out there which is well-designed, minimal and resource efficient. We want to see all packaging meeting those same high standards in the near future.”

Wild OATS Itinerary

Friday 1st May

Mon 4th May     Wanaka
Tues 5th            Queenstown, Alexandra
Wed 6th             Invercargill
Thurs 7th            Dunedin
Fri 8th                Timaru

Sat 9th               Christchurch
Sun 10th             Nelson market / Picton ferry
Mon 11th             Porirua
Tues 12th            Lower Hutt
Wed 13th            Palmerston North
Thurs 14th           Wellington
Fri 15th               PETITION DAY..... WELLINGTON

Ends