Multi-year purchasing, plus convenient collection and better design, turns good pilots into national systems.
As I step into the role of CEO at The Packaging Forum, our focus stays the same: scale circular systems that work, fund them fairly, and keep outcomes transparent.
In my first weeks I've been meeting with retailers, brands, councils and recyclers to understand the challenges they face.
Three things stand out: people want practical collection and recycling solutions now; convenient access turns intent into action; and local reprocessing grows when buyers commit to purchase recycled end products every year so processors can invest with confidence.
Packaging's first job is to protect products through the supply chain, keep food safe and fresh, and prevent waste. What happens next is where New Zealand still has work to do. Collection is only half the job. If no one buys what our recyclers make, there's no demand for good-quality material and circular systems stall.
A clear way for organisations and for all of us to close the loop is simple: buy recycled where we can. That means retailers and brands commit up front to buying recycled products each year so processors can plan, hire, and invest for the long term, turning good pilots into national systems.
Having worked on packaging systems globally, I've seen what separates programs that work from those that don't: committed buyers. In parts of Southeast Asia without formal collection systems, only high-value items like metal cans and PET bottles get recovered because they have resale value. New Zealand starts from a stronger base with kerbside and drop-off infrastructure. Now we need the purchasing commitments to match.
For retailers and brands, three practical actions now: Specify recycled products in store builds and refits, distribution centres and back-of-house—think posts, rails and bollards; interior panels and fixtures such as those from Future Post and saveBOARD. Make it a multi-year promise by putting minimum yearly volumes into procurement and supplier contracts so recyclers have certainty to grow. And publish what you buy—share the numbers so people can see returns turning into useful products in their own communities.
Spreading purchases across retail, logistics and council projects smooths demand and creates room to add collection points and divert more packaging from landfill. Households and public spaces are where people decide whether an empty pack is a resource or rubbish.
Convenient access is what turns intent into action: kerbside is the most convenient option with the correct investment by those who benefit from it. Targeted collection points for materials that aren't kerbside yet also support.
What works consistently across take back collection sites—whether at supermarkets, retailers, or community hubs—is visible bins, plain-English signs, and regular servicing. Make it easy and people participate. Using standardised signage and keeping bins clean lifts participation and keeps logistics efficient. We’re also pushing hard for a single, national recycling label, so New Zealanders know exactly what to do with every pack.
For producers and brands, the design lever matters. Design to be recycle-ready: fewer materials, easy-to-sort formats, avoid disruptive inks, labels and closures, follow standardised recycling guidance, and optimise pack size and weight. Use recycled content where it's safe, fit-for-purpose and commercially viable.
Share simple SKU data—weights and materials—so measurement and traceability improve. Trial reuse and refill where it makes commercial sense, as it prevents waste and complements recycling. And explain choices to customers so better habits stick.
We're working constructively with government on settings that could enable producer stewardship across all packaging—with reuse and refill recognised within the same framework—so pilots become durable national systems.
The aim is system stewardship: reward better design, cleaner flows and strong local end markets, rather than shifting problems between materials. Extended Producer Responsibility, or EPR, means producers help pay for and improve recycling based on how their packaging performs.
The Packaging Forum with the NZ Food & Grocery Council has also submitted recommendations on the design of a mandatory Plastic Packaging Product Stewardship Scheme to the Ministry for the Environment.
This report outlines a producer-led system to manage and reduce the environmental impact of plastic packaging. More than just plastic packaging, we would like to see an EPR system for all packaging materials introduced here that would adequately fund the net costs of collection, sorting, and reprocessing of materials
We're advocating for options that ensure if EPR is implemented in New Zealand, it's shaped in the most effective way. The Packaging Forum's voluntary product stewardship schemes are proven building blocks for this transition.
New Zealand has made progress: kerbside is becoming more consistent, onshore processing capacity is growing, and voluntary stewardship continues to show what's possible, but we need a system change through EPR to bring ourselves up to global best practice and for our exporters to meet the targets set out in the EU’s Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR).
The next step is locking in reliable offtake (purchasing of recycled output products) so processors can plan, hire and invest for the long term.
If you're a retailer or brand, here's my ask on behalf of The Packaging Forum and our members: Commit to buying recycled where you can. Join the schemes. Share your data. Help us test practical solutions—so what New Zealanders return through kerbside and collection points becomes the posts, panels and fixtures that keep our circular systems moving.
By Craig Miller, CEO, The Packaging Forum
