Fourteen million Fonterra Milk for Schools packs emptied by 170,000 New Zealand primary school children in the last year have been sent to Thailand and Malaysia where they are recycled into products including desks, paper, books and roof sheets.
At George Street Normal School in Dunedin yesterday children and Highlanders rugby team players took part in a fastest folder competition.
Principal Rod Galloway said as well as providing nutrition beneficial to the children’s learning the programme was teaching them about the importance of recycling.
“The drink it dry, fold it flat and send it back phrase is clever, catchy and engrained in the classrooms.
“The children take these recycling messages home with them which benefits the NZ environment beyond the school gate,” Galloway said.
Each handmade Thai roofing sheet was made of 7625 recycled Fonterra Milk for Schools packs and each Thai school book of 16 recycled milk packs.
Recycling had been top of mind for Fonterra since the programme’s inception and getting the kids on board had driven its success, Fonterra environmental manager Nic Bishop said.
“The education about recycling that Fonterra Milk for Schools provides is just as important as the recycling service itself.
“The initiative in place has allowed Fonterra Milk for Schools to achieve a 100% closed-loop recycling solution, looking after the integrity of the programme’s supply chain and educating Kiwi kids to be responsible for looking after our environment,” Bishop said.
To highlight the importance of recycling and continue to keep it top of mind for Kiwi kids in the programme, Fonterra Milk for Schools had now launched the Fastest Folder competition.
Watch the entries and track your school’s progress here.
