APCO announces finalists for 2023 Annual Awards

Tuesday, 10 October, 2023

The Australian Packaging Covenant Organisation (APCO) has announced the finalists for its 2023 Annual Awards.

Following a record of over 100 entries, a total of 45 organisations have been recognised for their leadership and dedication to packaging sustainability.

Chris Foley, APCO CEO, said, “In what has been a watershed year for the packaging industry, it is remarkable to see the outstanding innovation, leadership and dedication to sustainable practices from businesses across the industry.

“The finalists have not only set exceptionally high standards but are leading the way for a more sustainable future and are the driving force behind the positive change we aim to achieve for the packaging industry. Congratulations to all the finalists.”

The winners of the Our Packaging Future awards will be announced at a ceremony held on Thursday, 2 November at the Australian National Maritime Museum, Sydney. Here, APCO and the Banksia Foundation will be celebrating the pioneers shaping the future of packaging. The ceremony will be preceded by a half-day conference exploring the theme ‘The Future of Packaging’. All of industry are invited to register to reserve their spot for the ceremony.

2023 Industry Sector Finalists 

Finalists in the Industry Sector Awards are assessed based on members’ Annual Reporting scores and their performance against the Packaging Sustainability Framework criteria. This year’s finalists include:

SME Industry Sector Award Finalists

Advanced Skin Technology
Audio Brands Australia
Bee Dee Bags
Berton Vineyards
CHEP
Colourtrend Paints (Australia)
Comsol
Dentalife
Glow Consumer Products
Insulect Australia
KeepCup
Modern Dental Pacific
O F Packaging
Quintis Sandalwood
Shaw and Smith
Sleep Corp

Full Report Score Award Finalists

ABC Tissues Products
Ball and Doggett
Belkin Limited
Blundstone Australia
Clorox Australia
Coca-Cola Europacific Partners
Coty Australia
Detmold Packaging
HBI Holdings Australasia
Hobson Engineering Co
Lion
Pohlman’s Nursery
Real Pet Food Company
Recochem Inc
Rivalea (Australia)
The Arnott’s Group
Zipform Packaging

2023 Our Packaging Future Awards

The Our Packaging Future Awards highlight innovation and leadership from members in sustainable packaging education, improved collection and recycling systems, recycled content and reuse systems. Independent judges, facilitated by the Banksia Foundation, assessed applications against three key pillars of innovation, accessibility and impact. The finalists include:

Bega Group
Brasshards Group
Brother International Australia
CHEP Australia
Coles Group
Grounded Packaging
Hewitt
Huskee
Norco Co-Operative
Officeworks
Samoa Recycling and Waste Management Association
SC Johnson
Tetra Pak Oceania & saveBOARD
Unilever Australia
Winning Group

2023 Sustainability Champion Award

The Sustainability Champion Award recognises individual commitment to a range of criteria, including dedication to embedding sustainability into organisational practice, leadership, outstanding performance, standout achievements and personal growth. The Sustainability Champion finalists are:

Bryan McKay, Head of Packaging – Woolworths
Nicole Rindal, Director of Customer Advocacy & Compliance – Belkin Limited
Dennis Tynkkynen, Engineering Manager – Hanes Australasia
Jeff Maguire, Sustainability Communications Manager – Coca-Cola Europacific Partners

Best of the Best Reporting Excellence Award

Previously known as the Sustainable Excellence Award, this award honours the highest performing APCO member of the APCO Industry Sector Awards. The award is given based on report score and report content — for example, those who focus on sustainable packaging initiatives and innovations in line with the Sustainable Packaging Guidelines (SPGs) and National Packaging Targets.