Paeroa residents will be able to recycle their soft plastics at their local Countdown from today. The Soft Plastics Recycling Scheme is partnering with Paeroa based business Agrisea which supplies products made organically from sustainably sourced New Zealand seaweed to the dairy, horticulture, apiculture and viticulture industries.

Lyn Mayes, Scheme Manager says: “Managing Director Tane Bradley approached us to see how Agrisea could help bring soft plastic recycling back to Hauraki and Countdown Paeroa store manager Alice Davidson jumped at the offer.”

Alice Davidson said: "We're really excited to be bringing soft plastic recycling to Paeroa and giving our customers a way to recycle packaging that might otherwise end up in landfill. I know locals will be really pleased to see the return of the bin in our store and it's great to be able to work with a local company like Agrisea to help us do that!"

This latest expansion will mean there will be over 165 locations offering a drop-off service for soft plastic bags and wrappers although collections are currently on hold in Auckland until level 3 restrictions are eased.”

Tane Bradley says: “Sustainability is at the heart of AgriSea, we are focused on promoting a circular economy and minimising waste streams. It is great to see initiatives that are allowing all of us to get involved by taking our soft plastic waste to be repurposed into something useful. We will collect the soft plastics dropped off at Countdown, as well as our own soft plastic; bale and transport to Future Post where the plastic will be recycled into posts to be used on farms and vineyards.

“AgriSea is a family business and Paeroa is our home, we know there will be huge local support for soft plastic recycling and the programme fits our company values. AgriSea were one of the first AgRecovery sites in New Zealand which enables farmers to recycle 1-200L drums after triple rinsing, it is about making it easy for the community while also placing responsibility on the product manufacturers to think about their waste streams.

Tane explains: “I contacted Lyn to understand the opportunity for recycling, which then led me to sort and collect our own family’s soft plastics, the amount of plastic waste was quite a surprise. By separating soft plastics into another box, it reduced my council bin waste by a large amount. We are 100% behind this program and look forward to supporting our community.”

He acknowledges it’s a journey of constant improvement – from reducing single plastic use to finding alternatives such as bioplastics, made from natural renewable sources. However, plastic is currently part of our lives – and the ability to turn this into something useful is a great thing.

This recycling service is 100% funded by industry members of the voluntary product stewardship scheme.

About The Packaging Forum’s Soft Plastic Recycling scheme.

The Soft Plastic Recycling Scheme is a voluntary product stewardship scheme operated by The Packaging Forum, a member-based organisation dedicated to packaging sustainability. Soft Plastics Recycling has been operating since 2015 and is 100% funded by its industry members to capture soft plastic packaging for recycling into new products. The Packaging Forum also operates the Glass Packaging Forum and technical advisory groups.

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