The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has released a draft proposal to authorise the creation of a voluntary, industry-led programme to collect and recycle soft plastic packaging from consumers.

The scheme would replace and expand the current in-store and kerbside collection pilot schemes for soft packaging and would be run by Soft Plastics Stewardship Australia (SPSA).

The proposed scheme will focus on increasing the recovery of post-consumer soft plastics, such as shopping bags and food wrappers, with foundation members including Woolworths, Coles, Aldi, Nestlé and Mars. The SPSA scheme will be funded by a levy on participating businesses, calculated according to the volume of business-to-consumer soft plastic packaging they place on the market.

The levy includes both manufacturers supplying packaged goods and supermarkets selling own-brand goods. Participants may choose to pass the levy through the supply chain, potentially reaching consumers.

In the draft, the ACCC considers the programme’s environmental benefits to outweigh the potential for competitive concerns and has proposed granting authorisation for an eight-year period, which would come with conditions to ensure transparency and prevent exclusive contracts.

An interim authorisation has also been granted, enabling SPSA to begin sharing operational data and transitioning the Soft Plastics Taskforce’s existing arrangements into the new programme.

In a statement about the proposal, Mick Keogh, ACCC’s deputy chair, said: “We believe the proposed scheme will result in an environmental benefit as it aims to take over and expand the current in-store collection and kerbside pilots for recycling soft plastic packaging, meaning some soft plastics are likely to be diverted from landfill".

The ACCC has previously granted approval for major supermarkets to collaborate through the Soft Plastics Taskforce to process stockpiled plastics left after the collapse REDcycle, a similar collection scheme.

Keogh continued: “While we know that soft plastic recycling has faced many challenges in Australia, we consider that the SPSA scheme is an important stepping stone to expanding collections and recycling.”

The ACCC is seeking public submissions on the draft determination by the end of August 2025. If authorised, the programme would operate alongside broader government reforms to packaging regulation aimed at reducing waste and building a circular economy.