Investigation of Australian used packaging material flows

Posted on 25 Nov 2021
Updated on 25 Nov 2021
2-minute read

On behalf of the Australian Packaging Covenant Organisation (APCO), ISF explored how packaging in Australia is managed: from consumption and collection of used material, to end-of-life recovery and disposal

RESEARCH OUTPUTS

Plastic bottles, cups, cutlery and colorful plastic straws

ISF conducted a comprehensive evaluation of Australian used packaging material flows on behalf of the Australian Packaging Covenant Organisation—a not-for-profit organisation committed to the development of a circular economy for packaging in Australia. The quantities of used packaging managed through the waste system were quantified, with performance compared to the 2025 National Packaging Targets.

By tracing flows of used packaging using material flow analysis (MFA), ISF was able to evaluate the performance of used paper, glass, metal, plastic and wood packaging along all stages of the waste management system—from collection of used packaging, to end-of-life disposal and destinations of recovered material. It was found that 55% of all used packaging was recycled at end-of-life, with 24% returning into new Australian packaging. Plastic packaging types had overall the poorest performance, with only 20% of used plastic packaging collected for recycling; 16% recovered; and only 3% recovered as new Australian plastic packaging.

ISF’s evaluation found that compared to the 2025 National Packaging Target (70% plastic packaging recovery), significant improvements need to be made to how plastic packaging is managed locally. Through an evaluation of future scenarios, ISF found that to achieve the recovery target for plastics, rates of collection for recycling need to improve from 20% in 2019-20 to 82% by 2025. This can only be achieved by expanding container deposit schemes and separate collections to collect greater quantities of plastic packaging for recycling, and improving soft plastic collections at the kerbside—along with necessary investments in local plastic recycling capacities.

Packaging Material Flow Analysis 2019-20 (2021) (Report)