Large-scale model for soft plastics recycling trialled in Vic

The nation’s food and grocery manufacturers are backing a new scheme aimed at keeping soft plastic packaging out of landfill and helping to build a new recycling industry producing sought-after food-grade, recycled soft plastic packaging here in Australia.

Coinciding with National Recycling Week (7–13 November 2022), the first in a series of trials of kerbside collection of soft plastic packaging has begun in Victoria’s Macedon Ranges Shire Council, making recycling of plastics such as bread bags, cereal box liners and ice cream wrappers easy for participating households.

The trials are part of the National Plastics Recycling Scheme project (NPRS), which is led by the Australian Food and Grocery Council (AFGC) and will help design a model for large-scale ‘bag-in-bin’ kerbside collection and sorting of soft plastic packaging for advanced recycling.

AFGC CEO Tanya Barden said the project aims to close the loop for soft plastic packaging, capturing it to create food-grade recycled packaging materials that local food and grocery manufacturers need but currently have to buy from overseas.

Barden said the recently paused REDcycle store drop-off program, which is not connected to the NPRS project, addressed a part of the recycling market but for the longer term there is a need for a larger-scale program to recycle soft plastics and provide recycled, food-grade packaging material onshore.

“Soft plastic packaging plays a vital role ensuring the freshness and protection of food, personal care and home care products, and manufacturers use soft plastics because they are strong and light with a low carbon footprint,” Barden said.

Plastics from the Macedon Ranges Shire Council trial will be taken for advanced recycling to APR Plastics in Dandenong, Victoria. In advanced recycling, the material is converted into oil that can be used to make new plastics.

Image credit: iStock.com/Dvoinik