From the first of February 2024, local councils (territorial authorities) will be required to standardise the materials they accept in council-managed kerbside recycling, food scraps, and food organics and garden organics (FOGO) collections. The new requirements were published in the New Zealand Gazette.
The Ministry for the Environment has published the Standard materials for kerbside collections guidance document to support implementing the standard material requirements.
The guidance document provides further explanatory detail and examples of the kerbside standard materials changes.
The NZFGC is pleased to see that the Ministry for the Environment has acknowledged the impact these changes will have on our members. They are committed to finding alternative or future collection systems for the materials excluded from kerbside collections from the first of February 2024. The NZFGC will prioritise working with officials and other stakeholders to find alternative solutions for the Ministry to consider.
The NZFGC are pleased that advocacy to have tethered caps and lids, including metal lids left affixed to cans, has resulted in these items being accepted and that the minimum size threshold aligned with Australia.
It will disappoint many companies that untethered plastic and metal tops, caps, and lids above the minimum threshold will also be excluded despite being accepted in Australia and elsewhere. It is disappointing that household aerosols, previously collected at kerbside by many councils, will be excluded. The NZFGC acknowledges that there must be a reliable recycling system for these items to address this issue, and work on this is underway.
NZFGC is currently undertaking the following:
1. Alternative collections
Working with the Association of Metal Recyclers (AMR) on how consumers can drop metal cans, lids, and foils off at their network of recyclers.
Working with Packaging Forum, AMR and Plastics NZ on how caps and lids can be collected for recycling.
2. Labelling
The NZFGC are pleased that MFE acknowledges the need for a reasonable timeframe for label changes and will work with members to understand what "reasonable" means. The NZFGC are working with APCO on potential changes to the governance, pricing and resourcing of the Australasian Recycling Label (ARL) and how QR codes can be used for labelling to minimise on-pack label changes.
3. Forward-looking framework
The NZFGC supports bringing brand owners and recyclers together to develop a pathway for more materials to be accepted in kerbside collections, whether councils or the private sector manage these. The NZFGC strongly advocates for producers and the waste sector to work together in the New Zealand consumer's and the Environment's best interests.
The NZFGC will continue to keep members updated and aim to host Ministry officials for an explanatory webinar in the next few weeks so members can put their questions directly to officials.
