WasteMINZ Member Spotlight

Topflite - A family business feeding your feathery and furry friends sustainably

Get to know our members and what motivates them to be part of WasteMINZ. This week, we talk to Robert Henderson from Topflite.

Topflite Warehouse and Logistics Manager, Robert Henderson

Tell us about your organisation

Topflite is a family-started-and-run Oamaru business that is a leading manufacturer of small animal feed in New Zealand. We do a wide variety of bird food as well as other small animal feed (poultry, rabbits, guinea pigs, cats, dogs, and more).

We pride ourselves on being a quality product and we strive to be as close to nature as possible with our products, to help support the smaller members of our families. We also have a range of partner products both locally and overseas to compliment the range that we produce here in good old Oamaru.

Why did you want to join WasteMINZ?

At Topflite we are striving to look at our carbon footprint, as well as our culture of wellbeing for both our customers and our Topflite family.

We have a mandate from the owners to look ahead at how we can help the environment and assist our customers achieve goals of sustainability and renewability in what we do and what we produce. Also, my wife is a big recycler of everything, and she has passed that onto me.

Robert Henderson at an awards night in Oamaru

What topic/issue are you most passionate about when it comes to waste/resource recovery?

For myself, to be fair, it is about getting a nationwide standard on recycling in general and getting it paid for. There is too much of “this is what we should do”, and not enough of the doing.
It should not always be about the dollar, as it is hard to get a constant message out on recycling when there is different systems in different areas and too much "not my problem" thinking - only my personal view, of course.

What are you reading or listening to right now?

I read the WasteMINZ newsletter (editor note - we love to hear this!), and I am listening to Brian FM at present - recycling old music!

Describe your perfect day outside of work.

Gee... it depends on my mood! I like a good game of golf, time with family and, to be honest, if the weather is cold and rainy - a day on the couch in front of the TV or with a good fiction.

Learn more about Topflite on their website. The Topflite team also have some great informative articles about looking after your animals, composting, and reducing food waste!