Africa102 | Successful ‘Recycling in the Bag’ campaignOver the past 15 years, more than 19 million tons of paper and paper packaging have been recovered and kept out of South African landflls. The country also boasts an average paper recovery rate of 70 percent, making paper the second-most recovered material in South Africa, where paper products are recycled in many cases up to 25 times.The circular waste economy is a thriving network of collectors, buyers and processors using recyclables such as waste paper to Fibre Circle teamed up with food service and packaging producer Detpak and Remade Recycling (part of South Africa’s Mpact Group) to show make new products.200 recycling collectors that paper grocery bags and take-away food bags Ahead of this year’s Global Recycling Day, Fibre Circle, the can be collected from households and sold with their waste-paper collectionsproducer responsibility organization for South Africa’s paper sector, teamed up with food service and packaging producer Detpak and stronger foundation for effective waste, we can ensure that used Remade Recycling (part of South Africa’s Mpact Group) to show plastics are kept in the economy (recovered and recycled) and out 200 recycling collectors that paper grocery bags and takeaway of the environment,’ Anton Hanekom concludes.food bags can be collected from households and sold with their waste-paper collections. Dow invests in African recyclingA positive outcome of the Covid-19 pandemic for the paper In a frst-of-its-kind investment, Dow Africa is to work alongside the packaging sector has been growth in online shopping and resultant recycling company Mr Green Africa to address critical gaps in waste moves to paper grocery bags. Made from recycled paper fber, paper management systems, enabling more plastic waste to be sorted, grocery bags and folding cartons can now be collected and baled collected and reused in new applications. The move supports Dow’s together for recycling. For waste collectors who sell recyclables to a global commitment to help advance a circular economy for plastics buy-back center, the type of paper – and the cash value obtained – and reduce plastic waste pollution.is signifcant. It’s expected to enable approximately 90,000 tons of plastic ‘With paper bags now synonymous with suburban and waste to be recovered over four years and recycled into new city-based grocery deliveries, when Covid kept many of us away packaging applications.from supermarkets, we felt it important to close the loop with the With support from Dow and other investors, Mr Green Africa, production and recycling of paper bags,’ explains Carla Breytenbach, headquartered in Kenya, plans to expand its operations into other marketing manager for Detpak. African countries, extending the capabilities of its recycling efforts For the ‘Recycling in the Bag’ campaign, small groups of collectors across the continent.were invited to a discussion and demonstration by Anele Sololo, In addition, Dow and Mr Green Africa aim to co-develop more Fibre Circle’s manager for education and SMME development. traceable, fair, high-quality post-consumer recyclate (PCR) that can ‘Safety and visibility are key aspects in the lives of collectors, be used to produce new fexible plastic packaging – helping brand who navigate busy streets, making an honest living,’ notes owners and converters achieve their goals towards sustainable Donna-Mari Noble, communications manager for Mpact Group’s packaging in Africa.Remade Recycling. At full scale, the investment is expected to create around 200 new jobs, impact the lives of 5,000 waste pickers and engage more Global plastics treaty accelerates progress than 250,000 consumers in separation-at-source programs.Earlier this year in Nairobi, Kenya, the UN Environmental Aqua Africa acquires Trashy BagsAssembly met for its ffth session. Hailed as the most important UK-based Aqua Africa has acquired Trashy Bags Africa, a social environmental pact since the 2015 Paris Agreement on climate enterprise in Accra, Ghana, that turns waste plastics into reusable change, environmental leaders drafted a blueprint for a global shopping bags, fashion accessories, school supplies and other plastics treaty to address the issue of marine litter and products, marketed locally, internationally and online.plastics pollution. In Ghana, drinking water, yogurt and juices are sold in small Given the environmental challenges faced as a consequence plastic sachets, a form of packaging introduced in 2004 to provide of plastic pollution, South Africa particularly supported the safe drinking water. The sachets are easily opened for consumption establishment of an Inter-Governmental Negotiating Committee but usually end up as litter.to devise an internationally legally-binding instrument on The company has reprocessed approximately 30 million sachets plastics pollution. since its founding. Every month about 200,000 plastic sachets Comments Plastics SA executive director Anton Hanekom: ‘We are collected and brought to Trashy Bags Africa by a network of acknowledge and support the urgency to address the issue of collectors, all gaining an income from their efforts while giving plastic waste and marine plastic debris. However, we don’t believe value to waste and creating jobs.this will be achieved by regulating plastic production. Plastics can For the last few years, Aqua Africa has supported Trashy Bags’ play a valuable part in achieving the UN Sustainable Development mission to eliminate plastic pollution on Ghana’s streets. With 63 Goals, provided they’re responsibly and sustainably produced, used percent of Ghanaians obtaining safe drinking water from plastic and recovered in a circular economy.’ sachets, it’s not surprising that much of this waste consists of Although the agreement is based on principles of equity and carelessly-discarded sachets.shared responsibility, Plastics SA contends that the special needs All products are upcycled, ensuring minimal energy use. Currently and circumstances of Africa be recognized and that the capabilities employing some 30 local staff to design, clean and stitch plastic of each country be analyzed. It’s proposed that countries should be trash into fashionable, eco-friendly products, Trashy Bags supports allowed domestic fexibility to develop regionally-appropriate plans the Ghanaian government’s aim to deliver a ‘Ghana Beyond Aid’ by for eliminating plastic waste leakage. promoting a ‘Trade Not Aid’ ethos.‘We need additional and predictable fnancing, technology transfer and the development of increased capacity to implement For more from Gill Loubser on the African market, visit our plans. We believe a global agreement should be used as an www.labelsandlabeling.com/contributors/gill-loubseropportunity to accelerate progress already made. By building a labelsandlabeling.com