Returning old films
Every year, AGRAVIS Raiffeisen AG organises a silage film return and recycling initiative across the region together with its member cooperatives and agricultural centres. Raiffeisen cooperatives thus pursue recycling management objectives and offer farmers a worthy alternative to landfill or incineration.
When are silo films taken for recycling? Where to?
Films are collected at various locations in the AGRAVIS region. Your cooperative or agricultural centre will inform you of the collection date in good time. As you would expect, we’ll also be happy to notify you of the exact date and place of the next collection in your area.
What items may I return?
We only accept silage films without any stretch or wrapping film and free of any cording. The films should be brushed clean, bundled together, and delivered dry, if possible.
Tips on collection
The high proportion of dirt on silage film poses great problems for recycling companies. Wear on shredder blades is excessive and it is expensive to treat cleaning water and dispose of sludge. You as a farmer can help to keep down costs for disposal if you observe the following:
- Start cleaning and folding the films together in good time since old silage film is accumulated throughout the entire year.
- If at all possible, collect films from the silo in good weather conditions since they will be easier to clean.
- Put the films together in bundles as it makes them easier to transport.
What happens to the collected silage films?
AGRAVIS AG arranges for the films that farmers take to collection points to be transported to the film manufacturers. There, they are shredded in a special recycling process, washed thoroughly several times, dried and then melted in an extruder. The recovered re-granulate is used to manufacture new silage films and construction foil, thus closing the recycling loop.