Love NZ Soft plastic bags recycling nears 15 million milestone

CANBERRA (Scrap Monster): The recent press release issued by the Packaging Forum states that recycling of soft plastic bags has exceeded 14.5 million since the launch of the Love NZ soft plastic packaging recycling programme almost ten months back. This includes nearly 1.2 million bread bags, 600,000 frozen food bags and 600,000 toilet roll bags. According to Lyn Mayes, Project Manager at the Packaging Forum, soft plastics recycling programme is currently offered by over 200 stores in Auckland, Waikato and Canterbury.

The first-of-its-kind program was officially launched during end-November last year by Nick Smith, New Zealand’s Environment Minister at New World, Mount Roskill. The program launched in partnership with the government and country’s retail and packaging sector was aimed at saving millions of plastic bags from ending up in landfills. It allows shoppers to take back their used soft plastic bags to supermarkets and retail premises. It must be noted that councils do not collect soft plastic bags for recycling on concerns over contamination of the entire recycling process.

As part of the first phase of the programme, special collection bins named ‘Love NZ Soft Plastics Recycling bins’ have been installed at 70 New World, Pak 'n Save, Countdown and The Warehouse stores in Auckland. The programme was later rolled out into stores in Hamilton and Canterbury. The bins accept not only normal shopping bags but also other soft plastics such as bread bags, frozen food bags, toilet paper packaging, confectionary and biscuit wrap, chip bags, pasta and rice bags, courier envelopes, sanitary hygiene wrap and almost anything made of plastic that could be squeezed into a ball.

The operational side of the programme is run by The RED Group, a Melbourne – based consulting and recycling organization. The bags collected through the program are currently sent back to Australia where they are made into park benches and fitness circuits for playgrounds. However, it is being planned to build similar facilities, capable of processing the collected materials in New Zealand.

Meantime, the audit of the initial six months of collection shows that 53% of the total collection volume accounts for non-branded single-use plastic bags such as fruit and vegetable bags, cereal bags or branded or unbranded shopping bags. Also, 42% accounts for branded food and grocery bags. Only 5% of the bags collected were rubbish. According to Packaging Forum, the contamination rate of 5% is much lower when compared with the recycling bins in other public places. Also, REDcycle has shipped two containers of plastics to the programme's manufacturing partner Replas in Melbourne.

The project is already supported by major brands including Asaleo Care, Ceres Organics, Coca Cola Amatil, Cottonsoft, Farro Fresh, Frucor,  Goodman Fielder, Griffins, Hubbards, Kelloggs, Kimberly-Clark,Mars, Mother Earth, Mondelez (Cadbury), Nestle,  New Zealand Post, Pams,Pure Delish,Simplot (Birds Eye),SunRiceand Wrigleys; Amcor Flexibles, Astron, Coveris and Snell Packaging & Safety.

The Love NZ soft plastic packaging recycling programme is expected to be launched in Greater Wellington in October 2016. It will be further expanded to additional areas including Otago, Bay of Plenty and Manawatu by 2017.