Many winners at the SAPRO Recycling Awards for 2024
Team of Extrupet, Bowler and Shoprite-Checkers win
OVER the last few years South Africa’s plastics recycling sector has made great strides, a testament to which was the number of attendees at the SAPRO Best Recycled Plastic Products Awards gala dinner held in Cape Town in September.
More than 190 guests attended, nearly double the number in 2023, showcasing a virtual who’s who of the local recycling and sustainability sectors from around the country: besides recyclers themselves, guests from across the value chain, converters, brand owners, producer responsibility organisations (PROs), research institutions and technology providers, machinery and material suppliers, and other interested parties were there. Several international guests were present, too, enjoying the atmosphere at the impressive Avenue conference centre at the Aquarium in the V&A Waterfront.
One of the outstanding features of the event’s ‘Oscars’ was that it attracted good attendance from the retail sector. What we are seeing is closer partnerships between recyclers, convertors and retailers, those who make the final decision about using recycled material for the packaging and manufacture of their goods.
Rigid Packaging
Six categories were contested this year, with the overall winner coming from the Rigid Packaging category, namely the team of Shoprite Checkers, Bowler Packaging, and Extrupet with their ‘Safety-First’ thin bleach containers that are now being produced with 100% rHDPE.
The material is recycled by Extupet with the project expected to an estimated 222 tonnes a year. The pack also boasts numerous design adjustments that improve recyclability after use, including harmonised white caps (see feature at right).
Silver in the rigid packaging category went to Myplas for the rHDPE it supplies to Alpla for the Jik bottles it makes for Reckitts. The bronze award was shared by MyPlas for an rHDPE it supplies to Polyoak for a 210-litre tighthead drum (in this case a co-ex wall structure is used, with the recycled layer between layers of virgin material) and to Extrupet for the rPET it supplies to Zibo Containers for its range of ‘Econo’ clamshell containers.
Agriculture & Related
Infinite Industries won the Agriculture & Related category with the beehives it manufactures from extruded planks produced from co-mingled scrap. Boksburg-based Infinite manufactures the profiles from post-consumer materials, including multi-laminated packaging material, such as liquid board packaging, toothpaste tubes and yoghurt tubs. It uses both post-consumer and post-industrial laminate waste.
The profiles include polymer material and fibre, as well as aluminium, and are manufactured without separation or pelletisation. “The bee hives have been tested for over a year in South Africa with a well-established brand owner and have been accepted by the bees,” notes an Infinite spokesperson.
Silver in this category went to ART Plastaform and SFG Technologies for the Hydrobox, a system for growing seedlings. SFG was the overall winner in 2023.
Household & Leisure
Blue Print won gold for a new luggage suitcase produced mainly from recycled material, which might be a first for plastics recycling.
The case is made up of 80% recycled ABS and can potentially divert 400 tons of material a year from landfills. According to the manufacturer, the quality of the rABS does not compromise the quality or durability of the suitcase. ABS is known for its strength, impact resistance, and lightweight properties.
Finalists in this category included Myplas, Hope Sonic, and Shoprite Checkers for the latter’s range of ‘Sixty60’ teal ride-on bikes and ‘Kasi Kruza’ children’s scooters; and Southgate Recycling and Fullimput for a prestige picnic set. The bronze award went to Airothene Products for its range of pool noodles and the silver award to Infinite Industries for its Foosball table.
Construction & Building
Nowatech and Revynil took the gold in the Construction & Building category with their PVC Composite Decking. By blending post-consumer PVC – sourced from landfills, construction sites, and even demolition projects – with 45% recycled wood material (sawdust), Nowatech has created a premium, durable and lightweight product that competes internationally. The partnership between Nowatech, ReVinyl and SAVA has led to the diversion of 90 tonnes of post-consumer PVC bottles, which are known internationally as being difficult to recycle.
The material includes mainly post-consumer PVC sourced from recycled PVC pipes, bottles, and water pipes.
Finalists in the category included ImagineIf, Stone Pony, Pepsico, and Unilever (the latter for a bitumen plastic binder); Tufflex Plastic Products for its warehouse rack shelving produced in a profile produced from modified co-mingled material; and Resin8 for its concrete additive for CRDC.
The bronze award went to Tuff Floors Africa for its ‘designer’ floor profiles, and silver was awarded to T&T Pipes & Card Technology Services for its PVC pipes.
Creative & Artisanal Solutions
In this new category, Lethabo Maganyele from the University of Johannesburg (UJ) won gold with an ergonomic bag carrier, while silver went to Nico van Blerk, also from UJ, for a novel surfboard fin.
Maganyele has developed and produced a collection of vibrant keychains made from recycled plastic shopping bags. This product was designed to be both functional and stylish, offering a practical way to carry your groceries while also promoting environmental sustainability and a circular economy. It is highly practical as it can simply attach to your car keys without getting in one’s way. This product is made from melted plastic, giving it a smooth, glass-like finish. The colours of the keychains vary depending on the shopping bags used to create the product, giving each one a unique appearance.
Flexible Packaging
Bronze in the flexibles category went to a ‘Flexi’ bag by Trio Flexibles, while silver was awarded to KR Polymers for the rLD/PP material for the shopping bags it supplies to Flexotuff, which in turn manufactures the bags for Dischem Pharmacy.
Judging criteria
Judges for the competition came from Plastics|SA, Polyco, the CSIR, Media24, and Waste Plan. Entries were judged according to a range of criteria, including uniqueness, difficulty to recycle, technical achievement/manufacturing excellence, market acceptance/marketability, fit for purpose, and recycled content/tonnages. The latter (the total amount of material used in the manufacture of the product) is arguably the most relevant of the criteria applied, which is probably also what the recyclers most focus on, but the other factors are important, too. In virtually all cases, technical prowess is necessary.
