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Agricultural Innovation Board urges deeper study of agricultural plastics, pilots EPR approaches
Summary
The Agricultural Innovation Board told a legislative panel that recycling programs for agricultural plastics face cleaning, storage and end‑market barriers; the board recommends waste quantification studies, pilots, and consideration of extended producer responsibility models and will issue a fuller report in January 2027.
Morgan Griffith, an agrochemical program manager with the Division of Plant Industry at the Agency of A, briefed legislators on the Agricultural Innovation Board’s 2025 work and early 2026 plans, saying the board is expanding beyond its early focus on neonicotinoid-treated seeds to study agricultural plastics and end‑of‑life options.
The board emphasized that current recycling options for items such as bale wrap, seed bags and nursery pots are limited and fragile. Griffith said the board’s 2025 survey efforts found 43 northeastern growers responded to a UVM-distributed survey but only nine were Vermont farmers; top concerns were disposal of farm materials and microplastics, and farmers cited limited availability and lack of knowledge about alternatives as barriers to change. "Forty‑three farmers completed the survey but only nine were from Vermont," she said.
Why it matters: agricultural plastics are bulky, often contaminated by soil or feed residues, and farmers lack convenient, local options for collection and cleaning. Pilot programs and existing efforts—such as…
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