The world is overloaded with plastic. Consumption of disposable plastic is a major contributor to plastic pollution. These items may be used for a day, or just a minute, but remain in the world forever — plastic does not disintegrate. Wrapping fresh food in plastic is an unnecessary use of non-biodegradable materials, which is leading to the proliferation of harmful waste, much of which is ending up in our oceans.

Earlier this year, the media and consumers were finally awakened to the drought crisis faced by our dairy farmers. While there is no doubt that all agricultural industries are hurting, the dairy industry faces a tougher challenge than most. To produce milk, dairy cows need to be in peak health and their food quality and quantity maintained. Whereas beef cattle can be fed lower quantity and quality feed to see them through the drought. So the increasing scarcity and the price of freighting in fodder has hit the dairy industry hardest. Some people have been asking why is this a national appeal when only NSW and Qld are in drought declared regions? Our dairy friends in WA, SA, Tas and Vic need the assistance of the 10c/litre Drought Levy since scarcity has led the price of grain and feed to record highs in all states.  Combined with lower than sustainable farm gate prices in both states, we are imploring consumers to get behind a petition to all supermarkets, in particular, Coles and Woolworths, to increase the price on all milk by 10 cents per litre and for processors to guarantee that the full amount will go directly back to the farmers.

I’m the mother of a 3 year old boy with cerebral palsy. I’m asking Coles and Woolworths to introduce special needs trolleys at all their stores, like big supermarkets do overseas, so we can get on with our lives instead of fighting to do the simple things! When I asked at my local Woolworths and Coles if I could use their Special Needs trolley, Woolworths flat out said they won’t be getting one, and Coles are going to take 2 months (it's been over 2 months now!) Mikey is a beautiful kid. As he’s growing, he continues to wear a leg brace because of his Cerebral Palsy - and there’s no way he can use the ordinary trolleys.  His condition means he tires easily and so needs the support of a safe and supported trolley. This should be an easy thing - these companies are huge.  In the grand scheme of things, getting at least one of these trolleys at every store has to be achievable.  And it would make such a huge difference for families like mine.  It’d mean we can have the choice to shop at any of their stores, just like anyone else would. As it is, like most families, I squeeze groceries in between caring for my family, part-time work and running a household, but on top of that, when you’re caring for a child with disability and/or chronic conditions, you need to fit in therapy and hospital visits too.  I need to be able to rely on the fact that I can just drop into a supermarket and there’s going to be a trolley he can use there - without it taking 2 months of lobbying and begging to get it done! Please sign my petition asking Coles and Woolworths to introduce special needs trolleys at all their stores.  Just like other big supermarkets have started doing overseas.  It won’t cost them much, but it’ll mean the world of difference for families like mine and make life that bit easier.

So far South Australia, the Northern Territory, Tasmania and the ACT have banned single-use plastic bags. Queensland will join them next year. NSW is lagging behind the other states and territories and our oceans and marine life are suffering, as seen in the ABC News report on Sunday February 12 about Clifton, the juvenile Green Turtle which almost died from ingesting plastic. http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-02-12/sydney-harbour-hidden-plastics-threatening-endangered-turtles/8263368 Courtesy ABC News Single-use plastic bags make up a significant proportion of the 10 tonnes of plastic waste that litters Sydney Harbour each year. As a long-time sailing journalist I've noticed more and more waste floating and washing up onto NSW beaches. The two big supermarkets rebuff criticism by saying they comply with government regulations and Woolworths told me they continue to offer single-use bags to give customers a choice. Tough for Clifton and his turtle mates to make the right choice when a floating bag looks the same as a jellyfish. If the big two aren't going to lead the charge by banning the bag, or at the very least charging for them during the phase-out, then it's up to the NSW state government to bring in new policy. It's also up to us as shoppers to change our habits and switch to reusable bags. It can be easy to forget and leave our reusable bags at home - if they are put back in the car after unpacking the shopping they should be handy each time. Let's reduce our reliance on using so much plastic, starting with the single-use bag, and lessen the number of marine deaths via entangling and ingesting. Image: Clifton recovering at Taronga Zoo's Wildlife Hospital, credit Nicole Chettle/ABC News    

Woolworths is selling a new range of "infant beverages" to babies as young as 6 months old. I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw the "Bebi” drinks on the shelf at Woolworths. As well as having an 18-month-old daughter Holly, I’m actually a midwife -- and these drinks drive me crazy. Babies that young shouldn’t be drinking fruit juice; it’s just setting them up for lifelong problems like obesity and tooth decay. It also goes against the advice of almost every doctor, midwife, dentist and child health nurse, AND our national dietary guidelines. Unsuspecting parents will fall for the 'convenience' without realising that they violate just about every bit of medical advice out there. I know this will happen, because I see it all the time in many other areas that involve women’s and infant health. Bebi isn’t the only one doing this, but it’s the worst I’ve seen when it comes to targeting young babies. The bottle even comes with a teat -- because they know babies that young can’t actually drink any other way. I’m tired of multi-million dollar companies exploiting young children with no regard for their health, best practice evidence or health guidelines. That’s why I’m asking Woolworths to stop contributing to this by stocking the drinks. If they hear from hundreds their customers, I know they’ll listen rather than risk losing business. If you'd like to give Woolworths your feedback, their Facebook page is here: https://www.facebook.com/woolworths?fref=ts&filter=2 Here are some links with more information: http://www.nutritionaustralia.org/national/resource/infant-nutrition http://www.dhsv.org.au/news-stories/2012/11/15/babies-don-t-need-bebi-fruit-drinks/ https://www.breastfeeding.asn.au/who-code http://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/a/-/wa/15279764/squeeze-on-baby-juices/ http://whqlibdoc.who.int/hq/2004/WHO_FCH_CAH_04.13.pdf

Woolworths and Pick 'n Pay continue to use plastic bags to put loose fruits and vegetables in when you buy them after weighing. This petition is to show them  that we would like to see a change to paper bag alternatives because currently they are contributing a huge amount to plastic pollution. This is an easy change that will decrease our impact on the environment and something we think is vital to see implemented. Please share and sign this petition and stand together against plastic pollution.

Many farmers in Australia are desperately searching for feed to keep precious livestock alive as the drought deepens. Paddocks are bare in New South Wales, parts of Queensland and South Australia. Livestock producers and dairy farmers all need supplies but the impact of the short supply and demand are forcing prices up. Farmers are calling it the worst drought in living memory. Many are facing ruin and say it is time for their city cousins to acknowledge the disaster. People in the city need to look at what's going on and understand that if you've got constant drought, the price of food will go up and you'll lose your country towns. A callout to Woolworths and Coles supermarkets to donate the profits from the sales of their new 'Plastic Shopping Bags' to drought affected Australian farmers. Without them you've got not produce on your shelves, no meat in your fresh meat section and no milk in your refrigerators. Time to stand up and help these people who put bread and butter on your families tables Brad Banducci (CEO Woolworths Group (Australia)) & John Durken (CEO Coles Supermarkets Australia Pty Ltd)

Sign the Petition to prove to Woolworths that a Woolworths Fresh Food section in Francistown would be well supported and worth their while.

A ban on lightweight plastic bags across Victoria will be rolled out by the end of 2019 however smaller bags used for fruit, vegetables and meat will be exempt, along with larger garbage bags, heavier plastic bags and animal waste bags. The ban applies to bags used by retail stores, takeaway shops and small supermarkets.  These small bags used for fruits are just as harmful to the environment as their larger counter parts. The government has acknowledged this and said “While we would like to eventually eliminate the use of all plastic bags in Victoria, we want to be sure we have appropriate alternatives in place first”.  All the government is doing is pushing the ban of these bags further back. In the mean time single use plastic bags and other plastic items are destroying our environment. These plastics are designed to be used once and then discarded. This 'throwaway' model of consumer goods has created a global pollution crisis which is directly impacting the health of our environment, marine wildlife, oceans and human health and it's everyone's responsibility to take action.   When plastic is exposed to UV it becomes brittle and subject to “fragmentation”. Over time disposable plastic items exposed to the elements will break up into micro plastics (smaller than 5mm) where they are more likely to enter the food chain. Traditional single-use plastic items do not biodegrade or decompose and will persist in the environment indefinitely. Over 1 million seabirds and 100,000 mammals die every year as a result of plastic ingestion and entanglement. Plankton is ingesting plastic which then “bioaccumulates” up the food chain as it is eaten by larger sea creatures until it reaches the seafood that humans consume which may result in an alarming health crisis. The small bags of plastic used for fruits and meat still have this effect, they are no different to the plastic bags that we used to see in supermarkets. All you need to do is Google “plastic killing animals” to see the physical damage they do. You’ll notice the majority of the affected animals tend to be sea creatures like turtles, seals, and seabirds. In 2013 in Spain, scientists found a dead sperm whale and determined its cause of death was intestinal blockage. In its digestive system were 59 pieces of plastic waste totaling 37 pounds in weight. Sea turtles are now ingesting twice the plastic they were 25 years ago. In total, it is estimated that ingestion of plastic kills 1 million marine birds and 100,000 marine animals each year. All of this damage by signal use plastics is still the same when it comes to small soft plastic. This damage has to stop.

In early 2014, Coca Cola changed the recipe of Tasmania’s favourite drink after purchasing Cascade non-alcoholic brands in 2012. After much petitioning, Coca Cola changed the recipe back to something almost identical to the original but with less sugar. After a comparison between the original and the new recipe, we find that the latest product is almost identical to the original - delicious. Unfortunately, few consumers are aware that a change has been made to return Cascade Ultra-C to taste like the original Tasmanian syrup and as a result no longer purchase Cascade Ultra-C. Sales of Cascade Blackcurrant Cordial have now dropped to the point where they have been wiped from the shelves of Coles, with the Cascade Syrup range being deleted nationally due to the supermarket “not having enough shelf space”. Woolworths could likely soon to follow suit. Once Cascade Blackcurrant Cordial is off the shelves in both Woolworths and Coles, production of the product would most likely be completely ceased by Coca Cola. Upon removal of Cascade Ultra-C from nation-wide shelves, the Tasmanian community will be left with only Cordial Syrups like Ribena, which is Malaysian made using imported Fruits. Contrastingly, Cascade Blackcurrant cordial is made in Australia using 100% Tasmanian fruits, utilising the best of Tasmanian produce and creating jobs and sustaining business within Tasmanian. If you are a true fan of Tasmanian Blackcurrant Cordial and love the original taste, sign and share this petition and go to Woolworths and get yourself a bottle. Without the help of The Tasmanian community, this quintessential Tasmanian product could be gone forever. If you are a true fan of Tasmanian Blackcurrant Cordial, sign and share this petition and go to Woolworths and get yourself a bottle. Without the help of The Tasmanian community this quintessential Tasmanian product could be gone forever.