Coles joins Finish and Rural Aid to help ensure water security for farmers

• Coles joins Finish and Rural Aid for the second year in a row, to deliver water tanks to Australian farmers in need
• Since 2019, the #FinishWaterWaste initiative has donated over 14 million litres of water to drought-affected communities, via its partner Rural Aid
• Support #FinishWaterWaste; for every in-store purchase of Finish Quantum Ultimate Pro at Coles between 1 September to 26 October, Finish will donate $1 towards water tanks for farmers^

Finish announced it has reignited its Finish Water Waste initiative in 2021, with a refreshed focus looking toward the future, to prioritise water security to help safeguard Australian farmers against drought.

While drought has lifted across much of the country, with dams in some cities overflowing, and devastating floods elsewhere [1], there is now more-than-ever a disconnect between city and country. Many regions still suffer from ‘green drought’ – where grass is visible but there’s no growth underneath – and water-shortages are still top of mind.

Water security remains an issue, whether it’s for today or for the future of farming, which is why Finish has partnered with Rural Aid, with the support of Coles, to raise awareness of the enduring struggle against drought, delivering critical tanks to rural communities in need.

Despite positive weather events and rainfall earlier this year that allowed a number of drought affected areas to start recuperating, local water supplies are still recovering and remain below the levels they need to sustain rural communities1. Further periods of above average rainfall and better measures for water security are needed in order to continue drought recovery across the country1.

Rural Aid CEO, John Warlters, said “The immediate outlook is vastly improved for large parts of the country off the back of good rain that fell earlier in the year. However, drought is still very real for many farming families and rural communities.”

“Through our continued partnership with Finish, Rural Aid has refilled empty tanks with precious drinking water and is now providing the infrastructure to help safeguard families into the future.  Thanks to the ongoing support from Finish and Coles, donations will go a long way in helping to strengthen the drought resilience of farmers and rural communities across the country.” he said.

Since the launch of the #FinishWaterWaste initiative in 2019, Finish has donated over 14 million litres of water to drought-affected Australians through its ongoing partnership with Rural Aid. To provide farmers with resources to help ensure water security for the future, this year Finish in partnership with Rural Aid and supported by Coles, will deliver water tanks to Australian farmers in need, to help guarantee any rain that falls is captured for future use to help our farmers become more drought resilient.

In line with Coles’ Together to Zero and Better Together ambitions to environmental sustainability and building stronger communities, the retailer has committed to support #FinishWaterWaste for the second year. For every in-store purchase at Coles of Finish Quantum Ultimate Pro during September and up to 26 October, Finish will donate $1 towards water tanks for farmers in drought via Rural Aid^.

Coles General Manager of Non-Food, Jonathan Torr, said: “We’re proud to partner with Finish and Rural Aid once again to support the next iteration of the #FinishWaterWaste initiative. Our ambition is to drive generational sustainability for the environment and communities we work in, and we want to continue encouraging Australians to save water to support drought affected communities now and into the future.”

Reckitt Hygiene Regional Director, Oliver Tatlow, said “As global leaders in the household cleaning and hygiene category, we owe it to future generations to build a better, more sustainable Australia. Since the launch of the #FinishWaterWaste campaign and our ongoing partnerships with Coles and Rural Aid, we have delivered critical water supplies to rural communities in need.

“By pivoting our focus in 2021 to water security, we hope that our donations of water tanks will make a positive difference to Australian farmers and ensure they are provided with the resources to become drought resilient in the future.” he added.

Lourdes Antenor

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Lourdes Antenor is an experienced writer who specialises in the not-for-profit sector and its affiliations. She is the content producer for Third Sector News, an online knowledge-based platform for and about the Australian NFP sector.

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