I am old enough to remember when it was acceptable to burn waste plastic and, in later years, to bury it.

In those days we did not have a lot of waste plastic and burning it did not seem a big issue.

Nowadays, there seems to be masses of waste plastic on the farm every year. With the increased prevalence of baled silage, black plastic and net quickly pile up.

Added to that are the empty fertiliser bags and empty plastic drums (from dosing products or spraying products). The build-up of waste plastic has become a major issue.

With burying and burning now out of the question, we, like many others, have had to find a new way of dealing with this problem.

A lot of farmers will gather it up and bring it to a recycling centre, which is okay if you have one close to your farm.

We have nothing close, so I took the decision (a few years ago) to join a recycling scheme. They sell you bags and you fill your different types of plastic into different bags. When the bags are full, you tie them up and stack them away.

Then when you have a number of them, you give the company a call and they come and collect them.

About a week later you receive a fairly big bill.

It is an extra bill that farmers could do without, but there are not a lot of options. Waste plastic lying about any farm can become a dirty and unsightly mess.

Right thing

I put up with the cost for two reasons. Firstly, it is the right thing to do rather than burn it and pollute the atmosphere. Then secondly, it helps keep the farm looking better – I hate the sight of black plastic lying all over the place.

Overall, I think the recycling scheme is a great idea. You bag up your waste plastic and someone comes and lifts it and takes it away. Your Farm Quality Assurance inspector is also happy if you take that approach.

Collected

I tend to only ask for my waste plastic to be collected once a year. I like to gather up a good amount, so that it is worth their while coming out. To be honest, by that stage it becomes a bit of an eyesore and I really like to see it gone.

My one big problem with the whole scheme is the collection (or lack of it). The fact is that it is usually six months from when I tell them I have some for collection, before they come to lift it.

I rang in October 2024 and told them I had plastic for collection and we are now at the end of February, and it is still here.

Added to that is a lot more that I have no bags to put it in. It is becoming a real mess. I have old bags of plastic lying everywhere with birds picking holes in them.

The bags also end up in the way and I have to move them. On top of this I have stacks of loose plastic lying about. I am honestly fed up looking at it.

I can fully understand how some farmers could end up deciding to do something else with their waste plastic. If we really want farmers to recycle more, then we need something that works for everyone and is simple and efficient.

If you told the people in the towns and cities that you were only going to lift their recycle waste every six months, it would not be long before the streets were a mess with rubbish.

Surely farmers deserve the same service as everyone else.