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Building on a pilot program to process the stockpile left over after the REDcycle program collapsed in 2022, Australia's competition watchdog has signalled its intent to allow a new soft plastics recycling scheme that includes major supermarkets and food manufacturers.
To be run by Soft Plastics Stewardship Australia (SPSA), the new scheme aims to increase the collection and recycling of soft plastic packaging from consumers, such as shopping bags and food wrappers.
It is proposed that the scheme be funded through a levy on participants based on the amount of business-to-consumer (B2C) soft plastic packaging they place on the market. The scheme's initial members are Woolworths, Coles, Aldi, Nestlé, Mars and McCormick Foods.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) needs to approve this arrangement as competitors would need to engage with one another to make the scheme work, while participants may also decide to pass on the cost of the levy through the supply chain, including to consumers.
But the regulator has reached the conclusion that the public environmental benefits outweigh any potential detriment to competition that results from collaboration through SPSA's scheme.
According to data released by the Australian Packaging Covenant Organisation (APCO), between 2022 and 2023 more than 540,000 tonnes of soft plastic packaging was used by manufacturers, of which only 6 per cent was recovered. It is estimated that 70 per cent of of soft plastic packaging is B2C, with the remaining B2B component heavily made up of wrapping goods on pallets.
"It is clear that many Australians are concerned about the environmental impacts of soft plastic packaging and want to recycle it,” ACCC deputy chair Mick Keogh says.
"We believe the proposed scheme will result in an environmental benefit as it aims to take over and expand the current in-store collection and kerbside pilots for recycling soft plastic packaging, meaning some soft plastics are likely to be diverted from landfill.
"While we know that soft plastic recycling has faced many challenges in Australia, we consider that the SPSA scheme is an important stepping stone to expanding collections and recycling."
Having previously authorised Aldi, Coles and Woolworths to work together to remediate the stockpile of soft plastics left over from the REDcycle program, which will have in-store collections pilots ongoing until July 2026, the ACCC has issued a draft determination to authorise the new voluntary, industry-led scheme for eight years.
Its approval would come with the proviso that there is a reporting condition to ensure transparency of the scheme's performance, and that there are no exclusive contracts with processors.
Submissions on the ACCC’s draft determination are due by 25 August 2025.
The SPSA's sorting and recycling partners include the Alpine Shire Council, iQRenew, APR Kerbside, APR Plastics, the Central Adelaide Waste and Recycling Authority (CAWRA), City of Charles Sturt, City of Newcastle, City of Adelaide, City of Ballarat, Cleanaway Waste Management (ASX: CWY), Curby, Tamworth Regional Council, Central Coast Council, Mosman Council, Albury City, Halve Waste, Indigo Shire Council, Macedon Ranges Shire Council, 3RG Recycling, Port Adelaide Enfield and City of Wodonga.
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