World experts have converged on Kaikoura to discuss ways to rid the planet of waste.
Zero Waste NZ chief executive Jo Knight said her aim was to secure a declaration to make the South Island the first zero waste island in the world. The country's clean green image was "increasingly
a mirage", she said.
Plates for meals at the conference are made from potato starch and are 100 percent biodegradable; delegates' pens are made from recycled paper (the ink is made of biodegradable polypropylene plastic); and the conference bags for delegates are made from recyclable polypropylene and can be reused as shopping bags.