The Australian Packaging Covenant (APCO) has officially launched a new five-year plan backed by environment ministers, with seven distinctives.
Trish Hyde, who stepped up as APC CEO in April this year, told PKN the plan, which commences next month, has actively involved members and will address key issues relating to business sustainability.
In the past, the Covenant’s activities have been jointly funded by industry and jurisdictions, with both committing $15 million over the five years of the previous plan.
The industry has agreed to take full funding responsibility for this plan, and significantly increase its direct financial contribution to the Covenant’s activities to $34 million over the next five years.
Trish Hyde has outlined seven key areas of focus for the plan:
- Increased adoption of sustainable design, with the goal of having 90 per cent of signatories with a long-term sustainability strategy entwined in their business processes.
- The Covenant will have developed proven viable approaches to remove 50 per cent of problem packaging types or materials – including soft plastics, takeaway coffee cups, and expanded polystyrene – from landfill.
- A unified packaging Recycling/Disposal Labelling Scheme to guide consumer behaviour, resulting in less recyclable packaging going to landfill.
- The reduction of single-use B2B packaging by 30 per cent.
- 20 per cent of takeaway outlets will have sourced sustainable packaging from
the APC Marketplace. - The Covenant will have developed a single Packaging Impact Measure and demonstrate a decrease in the environmental impact of packaging in Australia.
- The Industry will have demonstrated improved performance through an increase in the overall mean for signatories’ annual report ratings.
The APCO has also welcomed six new directors to its board.There are now two brand owner directors: Jason Goode and Renata Lopes; one industry association director: Jackie Smiles; and three independent directors: Anne Astin, Trent Bartlett, and Sam Andersen.
APCO’s new constitution allows for a board of up to nine directors. Tanya Barden (industry association appointee), Grant Musgrove (industry association appointee), and Jacky Nordsvan (brand owner appointee), will continue on the board for 2017.
The launch video for the new strategic plan is below:
