![A new industry-supported satchel gives Aussies a practical way to recycle empty medicine blister packs from home. [Image: CHP Australia]](http://cdn.yaffa.com.au/yaffadsp/images/dmImage/StandardImage/satchel-open-cropped.png)
Consumer Healthcare Products (CHP) Australia, the peak body and lead industry voice for the consumer healthcare products sector, has partnered with Pharmacycle to launch a new industry-supported Recycle at Home Satchel.
The satchel makes it easier for Australians to recycle empty medicine blister packs from home. It is available through the Pharmacycle online store and complements its free participating drop-off locations.
Launched during National Recycling Week (9–15 November), the satchel is supported by CHP Australia members, leading manufacturers and distributors of consumer healthcare products, who are taking voluntary collective action through CHP Australia to address the recycling challenges associated with medicine blister pack packaging.
Participating consumer healthcare products brands, sponsors and manufacturers include:
- Arrotex Pharmaceuticals
- Aspen Pharmacare Australia
- Claratyne: Bayer Australia
- Demazin: iNova Pharmaceuticals Australia
- W. Woods
- Panadol: Haleon Australia
- Zyrtec: Kenvue Australia
Judy Stenmark, CEO of CHP Australia, said blister packs do an important job protecting medicines, but they are hard to recycle and not everyone has a drop-off close by.
“Sustainability matters to our sector, and our participating members have chosen to do something practical about it, together and voluntarily,” she said.
“As the peak body, we’re proud to bring them together so that more Australians, wherever they live, have a simple way to recycle their empty blister packs from home. It’s one step, and an important one, and it works alongside the free drop-off locations Pharmacycle already has in place.”
Justin Lichtblau, head of brand, communications and partnerships at Pharmacycle, welcomed the collective commitment from CHP Australia and its members.
“We've seen firsthand just how engaged Australians are in blister pack recycling, across metropolitan, regional and rural communities alike,” he said.
“What's exciting about this initiative is seeing CHP Australia and its members come together to build on that momentum and make recycling accessible to even more people. It's a great example of what can be achieved through industry collaboration.”
According to Elena Pintado, marketing manager, Panadol at Haleon ANZ, the new satchel builds on their previous work with Pharmacycle to support at-home blister pack recycling.
“Panadol, a Haleon brand, is proud to again be involved with an at-home blister pack recycling trial with Pharmacycle,” she said.
“Building on the positive consumer response to an earlier trial, we are pleased to join other participating CHP Australia members in supporting a practical, more accessible at-home option that gives Australians another way to recycle their empty medicine blister packs.”
It is estimated that Australians use more than two billion medicine blister packs every year. Made from plastic and aluminium, blister packs cannot go in household recycling bins and need specialised processing to recover their materials.
Recycling access has grown, and the satchel takes this further by making it available from every home.
Pharmacycle already provides a national collection and processing pathway for medicine blister packs, having recycled 86 million packs over the past financial year from more than 1000 drop-off points.
Two ways to recycle – drop off locally, or recycle from home
The new at-home satchel complements Pharmacycle’s existing network of more than 1000 free public drop-off locations, giving Australians greater choice in how they recycle their empty medicine blister packs.
With support from CHP Australia and participating members, the satchel is available at the subsidised price of $9.95, including return postage.
The satchel accepts empty medicine blister packs from any brand, including prescription and over-the-counter medicines. Blister packs that still contain medicines, outer cardboard packaging, paper leaflets, and other packaging should not be included in the satchel.
Once full, it can be sealed and dropped into a red Australia Post street posting box or taken to a post office.
After return, the blister packs and satchels are sorted and recycled locally in Australia to recover their plastic and aluminium components.
For unwanted or expired medicines, including medicines remaining in blister packs, visit a participating pharmacy in the Return Unwanted Medicines (RUM) program for safe disposal.
