Government’s Waste Minimisation Fund along with businesses, including prominent New Zealand flooring company Inzide Commercial, will partner with the Sustainable Business Network (SBN) in a new campaign that “aims to increase the number of businesses applying a circular approach by 2021,” the company states.

The $160,000 grant for SBN’s two-year campaign will go towards increasing “product take back” schemes and promoting a circular approach to production among New Zealand businesses. A national stewardship roadshow is one method that will be employed to encourage companies to take responsibility for reducing the environmental impact of the products they distribute. The SBN notes, “The ultimate goal is to increase the product stewardship schemes accredited by the Ministry for the Environment. There are currently 13.”

One such scheme is Interface’s ReEntry Programme, which recycles old product and reuses them. A circular production method “involves greater oversight and control throughout the whole life cycle, from production through to end of use and beyond,” SBN says. Inzide comments that along with the Government grant, “Additional funding and mentorship will be provided by businesses already showcasing their ability to provide closed loop products.”

However, the organisation and businesses such as Inzide are adamant that reducing waste is crucial. Rachel Brown, CEO of SBN, says, “It’s fundamental to our future that we all take greater responsibility for the environmental impacts of what we do in our personal and professional lives. If businesses are not providing their customers with an end of life solution they are presenting them with an end of life problem.” 

Brown notes that encouraging businesses to steward their products well is a beneficial step for a number of reasons: “Product stewardship schemes help solve the waste issue. They enable businesses to capture valuable resources. They create better and deeper relationships with customers. These are vital steps towards the emerging low carbon circular economy, which we are helping grow in New Zealand together with our members.”

Read more about the circular economy and how companies are making an effort to reduce their environmental impact in our four-part series about the Industrial Re-revolution: one / two / three / four.