REDcycle has been forced to press pause on its soft plastic recycling scheme in Woolworths and Coles supermarkets in Australia. Allegations claim the company stockpiled plastics for months as recycling partners stopped accepting the material. More than five million pieces of soft plastic were being returned by shoppers daily.
“Consumer recycling of soft plastic has grown exponentially in recent years, with a 350 percent increase in plastic returned since 2019. However, due to several unforeseen challenges exacerbated by the pandemic, REDcycle’s recycling partners have temporarily stopped accepting and processing soft plastics. This combination has put untenable pressure on the REDcycle business model,” said a statement on REDcycle’s website.
Coles and Woolworthsrepresentatives were both disappointed by the news and committed to looking into alternative solutions for customers.
