Reducing the plastic footprint in agriculture

Agriculture is one of the industries where plastic is used from beginning to end: from the fertilizer and pesticide containers, to the covering of the soils, to the soil irrigation through pipes and ultimately to the packaging around the final product. Most of these plastics are used for only one season and end up incinerated, buried in landfills or at sea. When it is too expensive to remove, they are often left behind and ultimately pollute the land.

The Cyprus International Institute of Management (CIMM) project aimed to raise awareness among stakeholders in the Cypriot agricultural sector about the impacts of single-use plastics and identify more environmentally friendly alternatives.

Main results:

Visits and assessments of fields, farms and greenhouses in Cyprus, documenting plastic and microplastic pollution in the soil.
Documentary analysis on the use of plastics in agriculture and international trends, resulting in the production of three manuals (in Greek): impact report, ReplantAgro Handbook, and overview of agriculture in Cyprus.
Study of Cypriot legislation on the use of plastics in agriculture, disseminated on social media and at meetings with farmers.
Publication of educational content on social media.
Organisation of meetings with opinion leaders to promote the updating of legal restrictions.

Updated on 04/08/2025