Earth Day 2023 – Invest in our Planet

Earth Day is an international event held on the 22nd of April each year. This day raises awareness about the ecological challenges our planet is facing. The 2023 theme “Invest in our Planet” is a message for us all to consider how we can contribute toward a better future for our planet.

Our vision at Meredith Dairy is to “Produce food Sustainably” and to do this, we pledge to tread lightly on the Earth, allowing the environment and our community to flourish.

Earth Day activities are focused on five threats.

1. Deforestation: At Meredith Dairy, our environmental team work to complete many projects every year towards reducing our environmental impact including protecting and promoting natural landscapes. Our farm is habitat for some unique flora and fauna, and due to past land clearing and invasive pests, these native areas are now classified as endangered ecosystems. The Meredith Dairy family has invested in significant revegetation activities over the last 50 years, and this work is ongoing.
2. Species Decline (in particular insect pollinators): Globally it is estimated that insect populations have declined by 40%, threatening bird populations and plants. Surveys have been conducted on the farm to monitor flora and fauna. Significant improvements in biodiversity have been determined in both remnant and revegetated sites.  What is particularly pleasing is the return of threatened Woodland bird species, including, parrots, honeyeaters, wrens and finches. At Meredith Dairy,we have chosen not to use broadacre insecticides, relying instead on Integrated pest management (IPM). Natural enemies e.g. predator insects, along with other insect properties control crop pests. Evidence of this can be seen on our farm with an abundance of Australian Ladybirds, predators to numerous leaf eating insect pests.
3. Plastic: Meredith Dairy has made a commitment to achieving the 2025 National Packaging Target via the Australian Packaging Covenant organisation (APCO). Our packaging carries recycling information which provides clear instructions about how to recycle the separate pack components. With accurate information, materials will be readily recycled and contamination in recycling streams will be reduced. This initiative promotes recycling and contributes to a circular economy.
4. Regenerative Agriculture: This enables us to continue to farm productively and supports our natural ecosystems. In Australia we live on the driest continent, have unreliable rainfall and very old soils. By using minimal till, precision cropping, paddock rotations and nutrient management, erosion is controlled, moisture loss is reduced, and the soil biome is preserved. Sustainability can only be assured by these farming activities.
5. Climate Change:  The warming climate is already affecting rainfall, summer temperatures and storm velocity at Meredith Dairy. Along with Sequestration of Carbon in tree plantations, 100% of the electricity used at Meredith Dairy is renewable, produced on site from solar panels (100kw), via a Combined Heat and Power unit (using waste timber), or purchased green power.  Australia is likely to be one of the most affected countries on the planet by a warming climate. At Meredith Dairy, we commit to investing further in greenhouse gas mitigation with a focus on our farms.

Earth has sustained us through time until now. Her bounty has supplied the essentials for our existence. her resources have enabled us to prosper, and her beauty has promoted our wellbeing. Our vision and pledge at Meredith Dairy, to “Produce Food Sustainably”, can only be achieved by continued investment, protection and promotion of our Earth.