Business members of the South African Plastics Pact held a landmark meeting with National Minister of the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE), Dr Dion George, to advance a circular economy for plastic packaging in the country. This engagement was hosted at GreenCape, the SA Plastics Pact secretariat recently, as a continuation of annual engagements with the Minister of DFFE, hosted since 2023.
The Executive Roundtable, which brought together leading executives from a number of leading retailers, brand owners, recyclers, resin producers and converters, representing ~30% of South Africa’s plastic economy, provided a unique platform for direct engagement between government and the plastic packaging value chain.
Minister George engaged with Pact members on their concerns regarding regulatory uncertainty and complexities surrounding Life Cycle Assessments (LCAs), which are critical for assessing the environmental impact of plastics. He announced plans to review Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) regulations and address the proliferation of Producer Responsibility Organisations (PROs), which has posed hurdles in the plastics value chain. By partnering with the private sector to streamline regulations, clarify LCA methodologies, and optimise the role of PROs, the DFFE is paving the way for businesses to innovate, minimise environmental impact, and boost economic prosperity.
“My vision is to harness the ingenuity of the private sector to forge a sustainable future that creates jobs and drives economic growth while responding to international calls for cleaner environments,” said Dr George.
Image 1: DFFE Minister George (left) addresses the Executive Roundtable. Chaired by Mr Blain van Wyk (SA Plastics Pact Steering Committee Chair and Public Policy and Government Affairs Manager at PepsiCo South Africa).
The Executive Roundtable was led by the Chair of the Pact Steering Committee, Blain van Wyk, Public Policy and Government Affairs Manager at PepsiCo South Africa.
“It was an honour to host Minister George at our Executive Roundtable discussion and to showcase the progress business members have made in driving a circular economy for South Africa. We wish to thank Minister George for his leadership and support, and we, as the SA Plastics Pact, will continue to collaborate across the entire plastics value chain to drive systemic change.”
Since the inception of the SA Plastics Pact in 2020, members have made significant strides towards a circular economy for plastic packaging with notable progress made against the four targets including a reduction of 42 million problematic plastic items (target 1), an increase of 30 000 tonnes of recycled packaging placed on the market (target 2) and the inclusion of 18 000 tonnes of recycled content in packaging (target 4), Collectively, members have also invested more than R3.4 billion toward a circular economy for plastic packaging.
The SA Plastics Pact is also one of 13 national pacts globally and hosted the first global network meeting, convened by WRAP and the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, in 2024, demonstrating its global relevance.
The meeting was concluded by Minister George, who also called for follow up meetings to further progress.
“The South African Plastics Pact’s pioneering success inspires us to refine our policies and accelerate South Africa’s leadership in the global circular economy,” concluded Dr George.
