New recycling program to reduce landfill in South Australia

An Australia-first recycling program introduced at Coles’ supermarkets will solve South Australia’s long-standing problem of not being able to recycle soft plastics.

The REDcycle program, instigated by the RED Group and Coles, allows SA shoppers to drop their plastic bags and soft plastic packaging such as rice, pasta and bread bags into any of Coles’ 42 stores in Adelaide and have them recycled into garden furniture for the community.

Sustainability, Environment and Conservation Minister Ian Hunter officially launched the program at Coles Welland in Adelaide today and congratulated Woodville Primary School as the first SA school to receive a recycled seat for their school yard.

The launch came as new research by Coles revealed people are confused about how to dispose their soft plastics, with one in four South Australians mistakenly disposing soft plastic waste into their home recycling bin.

The survey also found 66% of people intend to - or have already started to - participate in the new program by disposing of their soft plastics at recycling bins in Coles stores.

Minister Hunter said the program solved the long-standing problem of not being able to recycle soft plastics in SA by providing a new option for them to be recycled into furniture for schools, kindergartens and community groups.

The South Australian Government, through Zero Waste SA, provided $50,000 towards the REDcycle project.

Coles’ South Australian General Manager Vito Borrello said SA was at the forefront of recycling in Australia but the absence of a recycling option for soft plastics had increased landfill over many decades.

“South Australia is known for leading the way in environmental sustainability so it’s no surprise to us that two-thirds of people are keen to take part in this program in the future,” Mr Borrello said.

“Residents can now drop their plastic bags and soft plastic packaging at any of our 42 Coles stores across Adelaide and feel satisfied they are doing something for the environment.”

RED Group director Elizabeth Kasell, who is founder of the program, said the launch in SA resulted from the collaboration of RED Group, Coles and Replas, a manufacturing company which recycles plastics into furniture.

“We’re confident that South Australian shoppers will support this initiative and we expect that in the program’s first year tens of thousands of soft plastic packaging items will be collected and therefore diverted from landfill,” she said.

Woodville Primary School Counsellor Monica Lee said the school was delighted to receive the seat made from recycled soft plastics.

“We’re very excited to receive a new bench as part of the Coles REDCycle program because it will allow our students to see an actual outcome and benefit for their efforts. We hope it will continue to encourage them to reduce their environmental footprint.

Ms Lee said Woodville Primary School had implemented environmental awareness initiatives across the school, which had resulted in a 66% reduction in waste.

“We’ve implemented paper recycling across the school, have recently introduced a food waste recycling program for our upper primary students, and we also encourage our students to recycle at home as well,” Ms Lee said.

Primary schools and pre-schools have the chance to win recycled garden furniture by sending an email to everybagcounts@coles.com.au and telling Coles about an innovative environmental initiative they have implemented and how it is making a difference to their community.

For more information or to speak to a Coles representative, please contact:
Natalie Ciccocioppo, Hughes Public Relations
T: (08) 8412 4110 or natalie@hughespr.com.au