Extrupet, a business member of the South African Plastics Pact and a world leading African polyethethylene terephthalate (PET) recycler, has unveiled its new R200 million food grade bottle-to-bottle plant in Cape Town.
The new plant has the capability of adding 15 000 tonnes of recycled PET per year, increasing Extrupet’s total annual output from 30 000 to 45 000 tonnes. With phase two planned, national capacity will reach 60 000 tonnes next year. This expansion also enhances competitiveness, helping Western Cape producers meet new European Union rules requiring at least 25% certified recycled PET (RPET) in plastic beverage bottles to protect export markets.
The event, which was hosted at the plant on Monday, 6 October 2025, brought together leading stakeholders from the circular economy sector including National Minister of the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE), Dr. Dion George, leading brand owners and retailers, recyclers, Producer Responisbility Organisations and NGOs. It took place under the umbrella of the G20 summit in South Africa.
The event kicked off with a panel discussion between industry experts representing different parts of the plastic packaging value chain. DFFE’s Director: General Waste Minimization, Dumisani Buthelezi, moderated the discussion which had inputs from Shivern Reddy, Business Development Manager Africa at CCL Label, – early movers CCL in shrink sleeves that don’t hinder recycling of PET bottles, Dorasamy Cavinyen, Procurement Manager africa at Unilever – who has invested for greater circularity by removing problematic shrink sleeves, Telly Chauke, CEO at PETCO and the South African Waste Pickers Association’s (SAWPA) Bongiswa.
The discussion included commentary around investing for circularity by removing problematic shrink sleeves and the role of collaboration between producers, packaging manufacturers and recyclers, offering solutions for shared responsibility across producers and municipalities and the need to provide greater support to waste pickers.
Thereafter, Chandru Wadwhani, Joint Managing Director at Extrupet, emphasised the importance of plants like these in the face of economic growth and mounting waste challenges.
“Recycling plants are the unseen arteries through which waste finds another life”
“With each measure of economic growth comes a shadow, enhanced consumption. If we don’t expand recycling capacity, we risk a crisis”
Ralph Jewson, Project Manager of Woolworths‘s “Good Business Journey” emphasised the importance of collaboration, recognising that the journey towards a circular economy for plastic packaging involves stakeholders working together to tackle collective challenges.
“The success of plants like this one hinge on design. Gettiing the design of packaging right includes making sure we aren’t using materials and inks that disrupt the recycling process”
Nevertheless, Wadwhani also emphasized the importance of closing the loop.
Design alone is not enough. The circle only closes when recycled material is turned into a new product
Chandru Wadwhani, Joint Managing Director at Extrupet
Minister George highlighted the government’s role in creating an enabling environment through frameworks such as the National Development Plan, the National Waste Management Strategy, and Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) regulations. He highlighted how industry investments bring these policies to life, fostering collaboration between business and government to achieve growth and sustainability.
He further celebrated the new plant, highlighting it as an example of how South Africa continues to “march forwards” despite a lack of agreement at the recent INC-5.2 session.
