Montague Farms undergoes compostable sticker trial

Montague Farms is implementing sustainable innovations in its 2025 JAZZ apples harvest.

JAZZ apples will undergo a compostable sticker trial, reaffirming a commitment to reducing environmental impact and paving the way for an eco-friendly future.

In Australia, the majority of apples sold must have a sticker, which is important for traceability and quality purposes. These stickers are typically manufactured with single-use plastic, which means they cannot be recycled or be used for home or industrial composting.

Over the past 18 months, Montague Farms has been working with its sticker supplier, J-Tech, to launch a home-compostable fruit sticker onto the Australian market. The chosen sticker, Sinclair – T55 is officially certified safe for home composting by the Australasian Bioplastics Association (ABA) and is compliant with global composting standards.

In February 2025, Montague Farms conducted an initial trial on a range of plums sold through Coles and Woolworths, which proved successful.

“The Sinclair – T55 sticker is [a product of] over 17 years of research and development. It has only been recently possible with the advancement of technologies and environmentally conscious materials,” said Duncan Jones, Senior Marketing Manager, Sinclair. Jones added that, as well as ensuring the compostable end-of-life performance of the sticker, it was key to ensure the application performance was equivalent to conventional fruit stickers and worked on existing labelling systems.

The JAZZ apples compostable sticker trial is set to commence in August 2025, to last about three months in retailers. The new sticker for JAZZ apples will have a green border, which indicates it is a compostable sticker.

The trial is taking place at Montague Farms’ packing facility in Narre Warren North, which has capacity to pack over 350 million pieces of fruit a year.

Australia’s packaging reform began with the National Waste Action Plan (2019) and National Plastics Plan (2021), which set goals for recyclable, compostable and reusable packaging.

Responsible for leading this progress is the Australian Packaging Covenant Organisation (APCO), which oversees industry compliance and collaboration, and of which Montague Farms is a member. As an APCO member, Montague Farms is committed to implementing sustainable packaging and meeting regulatory requirements for packaged goods.

“This innovative trial of the T55 compostable sticker met our expectations, with sticker retention on the fruit performing in line with supply chain requirements”, said Montague Farms’ Head of Strategy and Innovation, Rowan Little.

“While still in the early stages, the success of initial trials represents a promising step forward in Montague Farms’ ongoing efforts to improve sustainability within the fruit industry.”

Image supplied by Montague Farms.