An American company which individually wrapped its prunes has beaten 100 others to earn the dubious title of worst packaging on New Zealand shelves.

The Unpackit Packaging Awards received 9000 public votes on products which had non-recyclable, poorly labelled or frustratingly fiddly packaging.

Sunsweet Ones, imported from the United States, claimed the award because of its non-recyclable wrappers for each piece of fruit, with further layers of non-labelled or non-recycled plastic.

Unpackit spokeswoman Sophie Ward said it was one of the "all-time" worst examples of unnecessary and excessive packaging.

"Without exception, every single person I have talked to ... around the country has been amazed that something so ridiculous exists."

The competition's organisers said the company's defence - that it prevented a sticky mess - was weak.

"I can't see there being a great number of pocket prune-carriers out there," Ms Ward said.

"It's great if people want a healthy snack, but I'd encourage them to make it healthy for the environment too by taking a few unwrapped prunes in washable container."

Sunsweet beat eight other shortlisted products for the award, including the nearly impenetrable packs for Brother Ink cartridges and Oral Braun toothbrushes.

Large multinational companies dominated the shortlist, in particular brands which sold convenience foods and single-serve snacks.

April 2011 - The Unpackit Roadshow in Kaitaia

The best packaging award went to Potatopak takeaway containers, from a shortlist made up of small and medium-sized businesses.

The Blenheim-based company turned potato starch, a waste product from potato chips, into completely compostable plates and bowls.

Unpackit praised the transformation of a waste stream into a valuable resource, which could be fed back into the soil without harm.

The company's owner Richard Williams said it has been working with Plant and Food for five years to create a food-grade container which can carry hot or wet food, or meat.

Expected to be ready by the end of the year, he hoped it would replace meat trays in supermarkets, which cannot be recycled because they are contaminated with blood.

The competition also proved innovation was not essential to eco-friendly packaging. The second and third-place winners were time-honoured, simple designs - the Speight's swap-a-crate, and the egg carton.

Ms Ward said the purpose of the awards was not to slam the worst-performing companies, but instead encourage them to do better and show them that the public noticed poor packaging.

WORST PACKAGING

Winner: Sunsweet Ones prunes

Nominees:

• Brother Ink Cartridges
• Oral Braun Toothbrush Heads
• Cedenco Prepack Corn on the Cob

BEST PACKAGING

• Winner: Potatopak takeaway bowls and plates (Blenheim)
• 2nd: Speights swap-a-crate (Dunedin)
• 3rd: Egg carton (North Island co-op)

Building a Low Maintenance Organic Garden

Free Workshop

Saturday 14th May 9.00-3.00

Far North REAP staff are creating a marakai /organic garden within their centre grounds and are hosting a FREE workshop to demonstrate the making of raised bed gardens.

This workshop will be lead by Grant Steven the leading organiponico expert who brought this traditional Cuban technique to Aotearoa. For further information see the attached flier.

Organiponico Flyer May 2011.pdf

Phone: 09 408 - 1380

Freephone 0800 4FNREAP

Email: info@farnorthreap.org.nz

Transition Town Kaitaia

NAU MAI, HAERE MAI

Movie time @ REAP - 6.30pm, Friday 13th May.

FIRST EARTH

Uncompromising Ecological Architecture

First Earth is an inspirational film about earthen building – it describes how to build cob, the oldest, easiest and cheapest earth building method. First Earth also showcases some incredibly innovative and beautiful earth-built homes, sheds, greenhouses and courtyards from California, Norway, Africa and Yemen.

Come ready to be inspired!

You’re welcome to attend Transition Town Kaitaia’s monthly meeting at 5.30pm, or just turn up in time for the movie – your choice!

Fri 13th May, 6.30 pm,

REAP, 33 Puckey Ave, Kaitaia,

Free admission and supper.

Transition Town Kaitaia – building community resilience through:

•  Community Gardens (behind Te Hau Ora o Te Hiku o Te Ika)
•  Sustainable Living Courses – housing, power, water, gardening (contact REAP)
•  Community events – movie nights, speakers, displays, open days
•  ACTION – towards a harmonious, productive and sustainable community

Check out the Transition Town concept at www.transitiontowns.org.nz

– there’s a growing network of Transition Towns in Aotearoa NZ and globally because healthy, well-connected and sustainably resourced communities MAKE SENSE.

Wai Care Environmental Consultants Whangaroa (WCECW), in conjuction with Ngati Tara hapu, extends an open invitation to two presentation/consultation evenings on the East Coast Bays (Taipa) wastewater treatment plant:

Wednesday 4th May (today)
6pm to 8pm
Taipa Area School Whare

And

Thursday 5th May
6pm to 8pm
Mangonui Hall

WCECW has investigated a number of options it believes would be suitable for Taipa, and will detail what it believes to be most viable, cost-effective and environmentally sound effluent management system.

Participation, feedback, input and questions that will help implement a system that the hapu and community agree will meet required resource consent conditions and benefit the environment will be welcomed.

Presented by Transition Town Kaitaia and Far North REAP:

"Making your home environmentally friendly"

Sustainable living in the Far North
Transition Town Kaitaia

Saturday 7th May 2011
10—2pm
226A Pukepoto Road, Kaitaia

F R E E
Light snacks provided

FREE DRAW for a Year of Weekly Curb-side Recycling

A one day workshop to help you make a more environmentally friendly home:

• cheap, toxin-free household cleaning
• easy ways to cut reduce your electricity bills
• cutting rubbish and disposal costs

“hands-on ways of living cheap & healthy”

Transition Town Kaitaia & Far North REAP

Puckey Ave, Kaitaia, Northland 09 408 1380, info@farnorthreap.org.nz www.iReap.co.nz

KAITIAKITANGA * RESILIENCE * TAIAO * ENVIRONMENT * WHANAU * COMMUNITY

A Northland farm owner has been fined $54,000 – and his farm manager $10,000 – for offences relating to dairy effluent discharges at an Awarua farm.

Kerikeri man Mervyn James Pinny had denied 16 charges laid against him by the Northland Regional Council relating to a farm he owns at Awarua, about 13km south of Kaikohe.

He defended the charges before Environment Court Judge Gordon Whiting with the case heard in the Whangarei District Court over several days in December last year and January this year.

In a reserved judgment delivered recently, Judge Whiting convicted Pinny of four of the 16 charges the regional council had laid against him. The judge dismissed him without conviction on the remaining charges, which he ruled had effectively been alternatives to those he had convicted Pinny of.

Meanwhile, Pinny’s farm manager, Hugh Raymond Bolton, who lives on the Awarua property, had earlier admitted three charges relating to the same incidents when he appeared in the Whangarei District Court in June 2010.

On Wednesday 27 April Judge Whiting fined Pinny $30,000 – and Bolton $5000 - for offending relating to effluent discharges from an irrigator between 01 and 16 October 2009. The offending resulted in effluent discharging into an unnamed tributary of Te Ruakokupu Stream, as well as ponding at least 40cm deep in several depressions on the farm.

Pinny was fined another $10,000 – and Bolton $1000 – for similar offending relating to the same irrigator in a different position on 16 October 2009.

For offending relating to a cow standing pad – during which large volumes of effluent flowed into a neighbouring ditch and again reached a tributary of Te Ruakokupu Stream - between 08 and 16 October 2009, Pinny was fined $14,000 and Bolton $4000.

For a fourth offence relating to an abatement notice, Pinny was convicted and discharged without penalty.

Judge Whiting also imposed court costs and directed that 90% of the fines be paid to the regional council.

In his decision, Judge Whiting said owners of dairy farm properties could not lightly escape their responsibilities “by a contract of employment or agency”.

Owners of dairy farms were responsible for infrastructure, which included any effluent disposal systems and they held the resource consents required to operate those systems.

“As the owner and holder of any resource consent, they should be aware of the consequences of an effluent system that is inadequate, or which is not operated appropriately. As the owner, they have the authority to intervene. They have the responsibility to intervene.”

The regional council says the judge’s decisions and fines send another clear message to dairy farmers that protecting water quality is important and effluent needs to be treated and managed in accordance with the law.

Operations Director Tony Phipps says prosecution is usually a last resort for the regional council, however, sometimes it was left with little option.

“In this case, there was a prolonged period of alleged effluent-related offending leading up to the decision to take the matter to court. Mr Pinny was given plenty of chances and warnings…some would say too many.”

“This case is all the more disappointing because Mr Pinny is a very experienced farmer who I understand owns or operates more than a dozen Northland dairy and beef farms,” he says.

Mr Phipps says abatement notices had been issued over alleged offences at the Awarua property in September 2006, in September 2007 and again in November 2008.

Similarly, an infringement notice (effectively $750 instant fine) had also been issued in September 2007 and another three notices in November the following year.

The map below represents the results of the Doubtless Bay freshwater quality samples taken on 26 April 2011. For more information on the monitoring programme and all the results, please click here.

Please note: Due to the heavy rainfall over the last 24 hours water quality is likely to have declined since these samples were taken

The water quality at each site is assessed and reported according to the Ministry for the Environment and Ministry of Health ‘Microbiological Water Quality Guidelines for Marine and Freshwater Recreational Areas’ revised and issued in 2003. The guidelines detailed below recommend a three-tier (traffic-light) management framework according to single sample results of E. coli.

The current price of fuel at the pump may have had something to do with the larger than expected turnout (around 100) for the first waste-to-ethanol workshop, held as part of a project to investigate the practicality of turning organic materials into fuel, stock feed and fertiliser. The Far North Environment Centre and Far North Envirolab teamed up to show how a low cost distil system can add value to on-farm waste products by converting them into beneficial by-products including renewable ethanol fuel, animal food and fertiliser.

The presentation and project insight was provided by Andreas from Far North Envirolab. Andreas gave details on the distillation process and how he has refined this to produce a high percentage ethanol product suitable for use as a transport fuel. Various feed stocks were discussed including waste kiwifruit, avocado waste (post oil-extraction) persimmons and raupo. The relationship between sugar content (measured by the Brix Test) and the amount of ethanol produced from a given feed stock was also covered. Energy inputs, both for the transport of the feed stock and for the actual distillation process, were noted as an issue and Andrea’s use of solar energy was suggested as a starting point to address this. Following the presentation, Andreas fielded questions and discussion was fuelled by participants’ enthusiasm and clear intentions to ‘have a go’ themselves.

The next phase of the project sets out to develop and distribute a basic manual outlining the basic processes and procedures of the working model. The project also aims to encourage on the ground uptake of similar projects and is looking to hear from interested parties. For more information on the project click here, or to email Richard from the Far North Environment Centre please click here.

The project has been partly supported through the Sustainable Farming Fund which is administered by the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry