Farmers can bring unwanted pesticides and old livestock/equine medications to a nearby collection event to dispose of them safely and help keep P.E.I. farms clean. – Cleanfarms Photo

ETOBICOKE, Ontario, Oct. 30, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Starting this week, Prince Edward Island farmers can safely dispose of unwanted agricultural pesticides and old, obsolete livestock and equine medications through a Cleanfarms program.

Cleanfarms is operating seven collection events at local ag retailer locations throughout the province for a two-week period, starting on October 30 and ending on November 10.

“Every time we’re here, farmers show us how important this program is to them. They save up materials and bring them to these events for drop off at no charge, recognizing that this helps keep their farms clean and ensures these materials don’t go to landfill,” says Cleanfarms’ Executive Director Barry Friesen. “For our team, it’s a great way to meet with farmers and learn about what’s on their minds while providing a service that’s valuable for them and the region as a whole.”

The crop protection industry, in partnership with the Canadian Animal Health Institute (CAHI), covers the full cost of operating the program and disposing of the materials safely.

Since the program began, more than 4,200 tonnes of unwanted pesticides and 67.3 tonnes of obsolete farm animal (cattle, horses, goats, poultry) health medications have been collected across Canada.

This year’s P.E.I. collection sites are in:

• Bloomfield – McCain Fertilizer – 31 Gard Rd., 902-888-7431
• Charlottetown – Cavendish Agri Services – 19 Riverside Dr., 902-566-5597
• New Perth – McCain Fertilizer – 4763 Baldwins Rd., 902-888-7431
• O’Leary – Cavendish Agri Services – 41 North St., 902-859-2200
• Summerside – Cavendish Agri Services – 848 Read Dr., 902-438-4884
• Summerside – McCain Fertilizer – 168 Greenwood Dr., 902-888-7431
• Travellers Rest – PEI Agromart – 26210 Rt. 2, Travellers Rest St., 902-436-1600

More details can be found on Cleanfarms.ca under “what to recycle & where”.

Materials accepted in the Cleanfarms program include:

• Unwanted (or “obsolete”) agricultural pesticides (identified with a Pest Control Product number on the label, including used miticide strips)
• Commercial pesticides for golf courses and industrial and commercial pest control products (identified with a Pest Control Product number on the label)
• Livestock/equine medications that are used on-farm in the rearing of livestock, poultry or horses in an agricultural context (identified with a DIN number, serial number, notification number or Pest Control Product number on the label)

The program does NOT accept:

• Fertilizer (including Nitric acid), rinsate diluted solution, large quantities of unopened product
• Full and unopened jugs of adjuvant or surfactant
• Treated seed
• Needles or sharps, medicated feed, aerosol containers, premises disinfectants and sanitizers (including Formaldehyde), veterinary clinic waste and medications, ear tags, and aerosols
• Domestic pesticides, fertilizers and animal health products
• Any other household hazardous waste

Cleanfarms rotates the program to regions across Canada every three years. Collection events will return to Prince Edward Island in 2026.

About Cleanfarms

Cleanfarms is an agricultural industry stewardship organization that contributes to a healthier environment and a sustainable future by recovering and recycling agricultural and related industry plastics, packaging and products. It is funded by its members in the crop protection, seed, fertilizer, animal health medication and ag plastics industries. It has staff located in Lethbridge, Alberta; Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan; Winnipeg, Manitoba; Etobicoke, Ontario; and St-Bruno, Quebec.

In addition to this program, Cleanfarms collects empty plastic agricultural pesticide and fertilizer containers, grain bags and twine for recycling. Cleanfarms also collects seed bags east of British Columbia and fertilizer bags (Quebec and PEI only) for responsible disposal.

Questions about which products are accepted in this collection program can be directed to 877-622-4460 or email Cleanfarms at info@cleanfarms.ca.

Contact:
Barbara McConnell
bmcconnell@cleanfarms.ca
416-452-2373

Agricultural plastics used to store silage are commonly used on farms. They are among the broad range of products that will be collected and recycled or used as waste for energy. Farmers may see ecofees applied to this type of product starting October 1st.

SAINT-BRUNO, Quebec, Oct. 02, 2023 — Quebec farmers now benefit from increased opportunities to recycle agricultural plastics at the end of their useful life.

A regulation similar to the one covering product lines such as electronics, paint and household appliances has been extended to the agricultural sector. The objective is to make more accessible and reliable the recycling or recovery of plastics and packaging used by farmers. All agricultural sectors are covered by this regulation.

The regulation specifically requires that primary suppliers (manufacturers/distributors) of products fund the development and implementation of a comprehensive system for the collection, recovery and recycling of agricultural plastics in Quebec. From October 1, an ecofee is applied to certain agricultural products such as silage film, tarpaulins, food bags, and other products used in agricultural production.

AgriRÉCUP is the organization recognized to manage the recovery and recycling program throughout Quebec. Eastern Director, Christine Lajeunesse explains, “Farmers are citizens who care about the environment because it goes hand in hand with the health of farmland and the desire to pass on their business from generation to generation. They want their plastics and packaging to be recycled or recovered.”

The scale of the new programs will result in increased volumes of agricultural plastics being recovered for recycling or safe disposal. This will accelerate the progress of Quebec’s agricultural sector towards “zero waste in landfills”.

AgriRÉCUP, designated by RECYC-QUÉBEC as management organization

AgriRÉCUP, an organization that operates as a not for profit, has been a major player in the recovery and recycling of agricultural products in Quebec and Canada for several years. This organization has been selected by agricultural suppliers to manage this program. On July 11, RECYC-QUÉBEC approved AgriRÉCUP’s recovery and recycling program plan and designated it the recognized management organization (RMO) for the majority of plastic and packaging categories used in agriculture.

In collaboration with AgriRÉCUP, companies that supply agricultural products, associations and farmers have worked to develop a collection network.

Lajeunesse adds, “Farmers and the businesses that support them are proud to produce healthy food for us and our families. They also want to contribute to healthy and sustainable agriculture. It is great to see an entire sector and its sectors working together on a shared commitment to environmental responsibility.”

As it develops, the new program will result in investments in recycling technology and systems, which will fuel a stronger circular economy in Quebec.

Programs will be available for the following sub-categories of agricultural products:

• Plastics used for the preservation or wrapping of silage or hay (e.g., films, nets, twine, tubes and their ends, bags and webs);
• Bags designed and intended for agricultural use (e.g., grain bags and silo bags, bags of chips and bags of supplements, minerals, fertilizers, seeds and feed);
• Containers, cans, barrels and tanks designed and intended for agricultural use (e.g., seed, fertilizer, pesticide, soil amendment and sanitary containers);
• Maple syrup tubing;
• Class 1 to 3A pesticides and pesticide-coated seed.

About AgriRÉCUP/Cleanfarms

AgriRÉCUP/Cleanfarms is an agricultural industry stewardship organization that contributes to a healthier environment and a sustainable future by recovering and recycling agricultural and related industry plastics, packaging and products through a network of over 1,500 collection sites across the country. It is funded by its members in the crop protection, seed, fertilizer, animal health medication,and ag plastics industries. The organization is known in Quebec as “AgriRÉCUP” and elsewhere as “Cleanfarms”, and has staff located in St-Bruno, Quebec; Etobicoke, Ontario; Winnipeg, Manitoba; Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan; and Lethbridge, Alberta. 

Contact:

Barbara McConnell | 416-452-2373 | bmcconnell@cleanfarms.ca

Receiving unwanted pesticides and old livestock/equine medications at a Cleanfarms collection event.

(Etobicoke, Ontario)–September 5, 2023 – Each fall, Cleanfarms teams spread out across the country, bringing a valued opportunity to local farmers to safely and conveniently dispose of unwanted and obsolete agricultural pesticides and old livestock, equine and poultry medications.

Cleanfarms is the national stewardship organization that develops and operates programs to help farmers/producers manage on-farm agricultural waste materials. This year, it will be returning to four regions of Canada to hold events to collect these materials.

This year’s program features 72 collection events – some of which are one day blitz style collections and others that are multi-day events. They will take place in:

• Quebec: September 18 to October 6 with a mix of blitz and multi-day events
• British Columbia: Vancouver Island, October 2 to 4 and Fraser Valley, October 10 to 13
• Saskatchewan (Southern): October 23 to 27
• Prince Edward Island: October 30 to November 10 (all multi-day events)

This is an important opportunity to collect items that are no longer needed and bring them for safe disposal. Farmers are encouraged to bring:

• old or unwanted agricultural pesticides (identified with a Pest Control Product number on the label; includes used miticide strips)
• commercial pesticides for golf courses and industrial and commercial pest control products (identified with a Pest Control Product number on the label)
• livestock/equine medications that are used on-farm for livestock, poultry or horses (identified with a DIN number, serial number, notification number or Pest Control Product number on the label).

The program does NOT accept:

• fertilizer, diluted rinsate solution, large quantities of unopened product, and treated seed (except in Quebec)
• full and unopened jugs of adjuvant or surfactant
• aerosol containers, premises disinfectants and sanitizers
• needles or sharps, medicated feed, waste and medications from veterinary clinics, ear tags
• domestic pesticides and any other household hazardous waste.

The program offers an essential solution to a big issue that farmers are faced with year after year; keeping leftover chemicals and crop inputs out of the environment after they are no longer needed on the farm.

“Knowing that there is a safe way of managing hazardous on-farm waste materials, farmers appreciate this program and wait for it to return to their region every three years. Not only that, but we’re always glad to meet up with new farmers every time we’re in each region,” says Cleanfarms’ Executive Director Barry Friesen. “We’ve been told that this program provides peace of mind for farmers, understanding that the materials they bring will be disposed of according to the highest health and safety standards.”

Cleanfarms has been managing the program to collect old, unwanted pesticides since 2010, and expanded it in partnership with The Canadian Animal Health Institute (CAHI) to include obsolete farm animal medications in 2014.

“CAHI and our member companies are delighted to once again support upcoming Cleanfarms collections this fall. Recognizing the connection between animal health, human health, and our environment, we take immense pride in our longstanding partnership with Cleanfarms, which showcases our members’ unwavering dedication to environmental stewardship and sustainable initiatives,” stated Dr. Catherine Filejski, President, and CEO of CAHI.

The crop protection industry members of Cleanfarms, in partnership with CAHI, cover the full cost of operating the program and disposing of the materials responsibly so that farmers pay nothing when they drop off accepted items. All materials are managed safely through high temperature incineration.

The previous round of collections in these regions was in 2020 and yielded a total of 298,127 kgs of unwanted pesticides and 3,389 kgs of obsolete animal medications.

Collection events are scheduled at local agricultural retailers’ locations for ease of access. Farmers can find their most convenient events at the Cleanfarms’ website under ‘What to recycle & Where’, then clicking on ‘Unwanted pesticides & old livestock/equine medications’.

About Cleanfarms

2023 collections of unwanted agricultural pesticides and old, obsolete farm animal health medications take place in Quebec, British Columbia, South Saskatchewan and PEI. Farmers are encouraged to bring these materials to special collection events for safe disposal, at no charge. For information on collection locations, please see: https://cleanfarms.ca/materials/unwanted-pesticides-animal-meds/

Cleanfarms also collects empty plastic agricultural pesticide and fertilizer containers, grain bags and twine for recycling. Cleanfarms also collects seed bags and fertilizer bags (Quebec and PEI only) for responsible disposal. Cleanfarms staff members are located in Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario and Quebec Questions about which products are accepted in this collection program can be directed to 877-622-4460 or info@cleanfarms.ca.

https://cleanfarms.ca

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Contact:
Barbara McConnell   |   416-452-2373  |   bmcconnell@cleanfarms.ca

A focus on continuous staff engagement and development makes Cleanfarms a great place to work. Photographed is Cleanfarms staff at a recent team development event in Niagara, Ontario.

Etobicoke, ON (June 29, 2023) – For the first time ever, Cleanfarms put itself to the “Great Place to Work®” test and the verdict is in. Exceeding each of its key criteria, Cleanfarms is now certified as a Great Place to Work®, illustrating the synergy between staff members’ passions for keeping Canadian farms clean and working together to bring innovative solutions to life.

With a team spanning the country, Cleanfarms leverages a breadth of expertise and experience to expand opportunities to achieve zero waste from agriculture, from coast to coast. Underpinned by a culture of support, forward-thinking, and continuous improvement, this group shares a passion for promoting sustainability in agriculture and collaborating to bring innovative and ecological waste management solutions to farmers.

A drive to understand and improve the experience and output of the Cleanfarms team inspired the organization’s participation in the Great Place to Work® certification. Joining the ranks of hundreds of inspiring organizations globally, Cleanfarms has earned recognition from Great Place to Work® for its unwavering commitment to its culture and staff’s well-being.

“Going through the certification process was a unique opportunity to reflect on the culture we’ve worked hard to foster and to hear directly from our staff about their experiences,” says Barry Friesen, Executive Director of Cleanfarms. The certification process entailed an anonymous staff survey to benchmark satisfaction in key areas such as management, communication practices and more.

Cleanfarms analyzed the survey results, not just to measure achievements but also to identify opportunities to strengthen the organization to meet the demands of the young and dynamic field of endeavour. The vast majority of the team agreed that Cleanfarms is a great workplace, highlighting cohesive and collaborative direction offered by its management team, community contribution and access to training as just some of the contributing factors. And demonstrating a strong commitment to continuous improvement, they offered valued suggestions for how to continue to grow in a positive way that will be addressed over the months to come.

Friesen continues, “Receiving this certification represents our core values of putting people first and doing what’s right. We accept it with pride and recognize it as a celebration of our culture and community. We understand that when our team is well taken care of, they are better equipped to extend that care to others through the work we do.”

Being recognized as a Great Place to Work® is an important step for Cleanfarms. The certification sets the standard for the organization’s ongoing commitment to helping its team and culture thrive year after year.

About Cleanfarms

Cleanfarms is an agricultural industry stewardship organization that contributes to a healthier environment and a sustainable future by recovering and recycling agricultural and related industry plastics, packaging and products. It is funded by its members in the crop protection, seed, fertilizer, animal health medication, ag plastics industries. It has staff located in Lethbridge, Alberta; Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan; Winnipeg, Manitoba; Etobicoke, Ontario; and St-Bruno, Quebec.

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Cleanfarms.ca

Contact:

Barbara McConnell   |   416-452-2373  |   bmcconnell@cleanfarms.ca

ETOBICOKE, Ontario — Earth Day on April 22 focuses on how people can adopt one initiative that when compounded by others doing the same thing, can achieve significant outcomes. This has never been more important than now, given concerns about climate change.

One such action that many Canadian farmers take is recycling agricultural plastics. Through their participation in Cleanfarms’ agricultural packaging and products recycling programs, Canadian farmers demonstrate their commitment to land stewardship and caring for the environment. This practice goes beyond just one day each year.

For example, in 2022, Canadian farmers brought more than 2M kg. of empty plastic pesticide and fertilizer containers 23L and smaller to Cleanfarms collection sites. The plastic is destined to be repurposed into new products some of which will be used on farms, such as flexible drainage pipe, fence posts, composite dimensional lumber used in industrial construction, plastic pallets, guard rails, and parking lot curb stop.

“We’re marking Earth Day and Earth Week by kicking off our 2023 plastic container recycling program,” says Barry Friesen, Executive Director of Cleanfarms.  “By May 1, 1,500 plus of our collection sites across Canada will be accepting empty, single-use pesticide and fertilizer containers and other items from farmers again, and many already are. Earth Day is also a great time to recommit to our goal of working to divert all ag plastic waste from landfill and into a circular economy.”

The average recovery rates for pesticide and fertilizer containers 23L and smaller is 77%.

Farmers Have More Options to Manage ‘End of Life’ Ag Products and Packaging

Cleanfarms is expanding the number of programs targeting agricultural plastic materials as well as other products used in Canada’s ag industry. Farmers are encouraged to check if they have ag materials that they haven’t recycled previously that can now be returned to a collection site. Beyond containers 23L and smaller, Cleanfarms programs include:

• a Canada-wide recycling program for large non-deposit plastic totes and drums for pesticides and fertilizers
• recycling programs for grain bags and baler twine in the Prairie provinces with a pilot also in British Columbia
• a Canada-wide collection and disposal program for unwanted pesticides and old, obsolete livestock and equine medications, and
• a safe disposal program for seed and pesticide bags and inoculant bags across most provinces.

Ongoing growth in collection volumes of these materials underscores farmers’ willingness to adopt new practices when environmentally preferred management options are available to them. Results of the pilot program to collect empty seed, pesticide and inoculant bags across the Prairies led to a Cleanfarms decision to transition the pilot into a permanent program at the end of last year.

In addition to these programs, Cleanfarms operates pilot projects across the country to assess how to shape new programs down the road for ag materials such as baler twine, bale wrap, silage wrap and silage tarps. The pilots are the result of collaboration from many partnered organizations, collection site staff, transporters, processors, and farmers, and are vital to achieving Cleanfarms’ long-term goal of eliminating ag waste from the environment.

Regarding Cleanfarms’ many programs and pilots, Friesen says, “Seeing stakeholders across sectors come together to do what’s right for the planet motivates our team. Most importantly, the impact of the effort invested by our partners and program participants contributes to the work that is being done to address climate change.”

Cleanfarms is an agricultural industry stewardship organization that contributes to a healthier environment and a sustainable future by recovering and recycling agricultural and related industry plastics, packaging and products. It is funded by its members in the crop protection, seed, fertilizer, animal health medication and grain bag industries. It has staff located in Lethbridge, Alberta; Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan; Winnipeg, Manitoba; Etobicoke, Ontario; and St-Bruno, Quebec.

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Cleanfarms.ca
Contact: Barbara McConnell   |   416-452-2373  |   bmcconnell@cleanfarms.ca