Saves agriculture tons of plastic
The Norwegian industrial company Orkel has great ambitions for the future of agriculture. Through a software update on their machines, farmers worldwide can significantly save on expenses while also doing a service to the environment.
Published: 21.June, 2024 Last updated: 05.December, 2025
The software optimization developed by Orkel with support from the Norwegian Retailers' Environment Fund has already resulted in a 20 percent reduction in the so-called stretch film plastic used in the production of round bales.
Orkel's COO, Gjermund Kambestad, summarizes the project as follows:
– Good for the farmer, good for the environment, and good for Orkel!
Kambestad has traveled to Inderøy in Trøndelag to see how one of their updated machines works in practice. A cloud of sawdust surrounds the compactor in front of him, which has been producing round bales since the early morning hours.
Three major benefits for the farmer
Herbjørn Kolstad, the owner of the machine in Inderøy, is extremely satisfied with the results so far. He produces about 5,000 round bales a year, and with 76 grams of plastic saved per bale, this results in over 350 kilograms of plastic that do not need to be produced or recycled. Kolstad highlights three major benefits of the update.
– One is the economy, but there is also less work handling plastic rolls. And not least, there is a reduction in plastic use. We use a lot of plastic in agriculture, and everything we can reduce is positive.
World-class plastic savings
Globally, Orkel has a total of 600 machines in operation, collectively producing nine million round bales annually. The new software update can be implemented on all these machines, significantly reducing plastic use worldwide - altogether, over 687 tons of plastic can be saved each year.
CEO of the Norwegian Retailers' Environment Fund, Cecilie Lind, is proud that the plastic bag funds can make such a huge difference worldwide and says she looks forward to the continuation of the project.
– With this update, we will see a total reduction of several hundred tons of plastic that do not need to be produced, purchased by farmers, recycled, or cleaned up by the Norwegian Retailers' Environment Fund if it were to go astray.
But this is just the beginning, according to Kambestad.
– We are working to save over 40 percent of the plastic on the round bale, which is absolutely enormous, he smiles.
