Invest in plastics
Victoria is home to a number of plastic reprocessing facilities, which recycle almost half of the nation’s recovered plastics.
The increase in supply
The first stage of the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) waste export regulations for unsorted mixed plastics came into effect in mid-2021. This was followed by export restrictions for un-processed single resin polymer plastics in mid-2022 which has led to significant opportunities for investors in Victoria.
Read about the national export regulations for plastics.
There is a continuing need for industry to transition to further sort plastics into individual polymers where possible. This enables reprocessors to sell single-polymer plastic streams to domestic and export markets.
In addition, packaging will soon be subject to Government regulation with mandatory design standards and targets, including minimum recycled content within new packaging. These regulations are feeding into an increased demand for recycled plastics from large consumer product brands and manufacturers, leading to innovative ways of recycling problematic low value mixed soft plastics which historically have not had end markets.
The Australian Food and Grocery Council (AFGC) is committed to rolling out an industry-led recycling scheme for packaging which works in tandem with these regulations. This is among the many stewardship schemes currently in development within the broader plastics industries. The ANZPAC Plastics Pact is also bringing key players together with a shared vision of a circular economy for plastic, to implement industry led innovations and solutions, tailored to the region.
For more information:
Opportunities
- Additional infrastructure is required to separate and produce plastic flakes and pellets separated by polymer type.
- Advances in reprocessing technologies (mechanical, chemical and enzymatic) present significant opportunities for traditional hard to recycle plastics such as coloured, flexible and e-waste plastics.
- Upgrade Victorian resins manufacturing infrastructure to incorporate recycled plastics into new plastic products.
- Incorporate recovered plastics into new markets such as substitutes within construction applications.
Stay up to date
For the latest market developments, commodity prices and opportunities read Recycling Victoria’s market insights report for recovered plastic packaging.
To stay up to date with the latest grants and funding opportunities, register for our grants and funding alert.
Graphs and data
For more information on waste data visit Recycling Victoria’s Data Hub.
For help with investment solutions
Get in touch with:
Investment Facilitation Services
