New Zealand companies making a difference

Alongside individuals and governments, the world of commerce needs to step up if we are to seriously tackle climate change, biodiversity loss, and the other environmental challenges we face. Fortunately, a number of New Zealand companies have put sustainability are the core of their business. We update this list constantly, but here are the ones we’ve discovered so far (if you know of a company you think should be featured please get in touch):

Energy

  • Ecotricity - an electricity retailer for homes and business that only uses sustainable energy from wind, hydro and solar.

  • Emrod - researching, developing, and implementing long-range wireless power transfer technology using microwave energy.

  • SolarZero - a solar energy provider that allows purchasers to spread the cost of solar panels and a battery over 20 years rather than pay up front.

  • OpenStar - seeking to bring power-positive devices using fusion technology to market by 2030.

  • Liquium - revolutionising the ammonia production process making it cleaner, cheaper and scalable.

  • Hot Lime Labs - converting wood waste biomass into clean CO2 for commercial greenhouses.

Transport

Land

  • FTN Motion - building urban electric motorcycles.

  • UBCO - building electric bikes for on and off road adventures.

Air

  • ElectricAir - selling the Pipistrel Alpha Electro electric plane in New Zealand, primarily targeting training flights initially.

  • Ocean Flyer - aiming to operate fully electric seagliders in New Zealand from 2026.

Sea

  • Seachange - building small and medium sized zero emission boats using hydrofoiling technology for private and commercial use.

  • EV Maritime -developing electric and alternative energy commercial boats, starting with two 200-seat ferries for Auckland in 2024.

  • ZeroJet - electric jet propulsion systems for smaller boats.

Infrastructure

Electric Vehicle Charging

  • Evnex - manufacturing and installing smart electric vehicle chargers for homes and businesses.

Agriculture

  • EcoPond - providing an effluent treatment system that removes virtually all methane emitted from effluent ponds.

  • Woolchemy - transforming sheep wool into effective, sustainable materials for hygiene products.

Horticulture

  • Croptide - using smart sensors to achieve better yield and quality outcomes with less water, fertiliser, carbon emissions, and labour.

  • Adroit - providing monitoring solutions to help businesses and communities understand and manage their environmental impact.

Forestry

  • NZ Carbon Farming - a large-scale planter of forests for carbon dioxide sequestration and the creation of carbon credits.

Mining / Resources

  • Geo40 - developing innovative world-leading technology for the recovery of strategic minerals from geothermal brines.

  • Zincovery - building an alternative to the current carbon intensive zinc recycling process.

Recycling

  • Mint Innovation - extracting green metals from the world's waste to accelerate a circular economy.

  • Future Post - using recycled waste plastic to create durable fence posts.

  • SaveBoard - turning waste packaging into building materials.

  • Nilo - using waste plastic and turning it into an adhesive that can be used in the manufacture of building materials.

Food

  • Plan*t - plant-based protein alternatives to sausages, burgers, chicken and mince.

  • Sunfed - premium yellow pea protein alternatives to meat.

  • Foodprint - an app aiming to reduce food waste by connecting businesses with food that would otherwise go to waste with consumers.

  • Off-Piste Provisions - plant-based jerky.

Packaging

  • Compostaway - a collection service for compostable products to ensure they actually are composted.

  • Twiice - an edible alternative to disposable hot drink cups.

  • Better Packaging Co - compostable packaging for postage.