The City of Cape Town’s Waste Minimisation programme encourages all residents and businesses in Cape Town to reduce, re-use and recycle. As such it is very encouraging to see that The South African Plastics Recycling Organisation (SAPRO) has announced that entries are now open for its third annual Best Recycled Plastics Product of the Year Competition.
SAPRO have announced the following four product categories for the competition:
- Products made from 100% recyclate
- Products containing a certain percentage of post-consumer recycled content
- Products made from a mixture of post-consumer recycled materials
- Novel or artistic products made from recycled plastic
The competition has grown in leaps and bounds since it was introduced for the first time three years ago. SAPRO Chairman, Douglas Greig, announced, “We are purposefully aiming to create what has been called ‘the Oscars of the Plastics Industry’ as we acknowledge products that are made from post-consumer recycled materials and encourage brand owners and industrial designers to consider recycled plastics as a material of choice. We were thrilled with the entries we received in previous years, and are expecting an increase in both the quality and quantity of submissions for the 2012 competition, as the entrants reflect the local plastic recycling industry’s growth in size, sophistication and value”.
Last year’s overall winner and recipient of the Packaging Council of South Africa (PACSA) Trophy for the Best Recycled Product of the Year, was Polypet who entered its 1.5 litre cooldrink bottle manufactured for Woolworths.
“Polypet has set the bar high for entrants to follow this year, as the judges will once again be looking for products that contain a high percentage of recycled content and have wide consumer acceptance”, Greig explains. A panel of plastics experts will be looking for entries that focus attention on the quality of products and innovation that are associated with the local plastics recycling industry.
Entries will be judged on the following criteria:
- Life expectancy of the product
- Sustainability, long-term demand and market acceptance for the product (i.e. will it still sell in five years time?)
- Potential tonnages diverted from landfills and converted into a product
Replacement of alternative materials - Technical achievements in manufacturing excellence to overcome recycled material challenges
- Measures taken to ensure product consistency and customer satisfaction despite recycled material content
Entry forms, rules and competition information can be obtained from the SAPRO website, the Plastics SA website or from the organizers via Annabe@absamail.co.za.
The closing date for entries is Friday, 24 August 2012. The winners will be announced at a gala dinner on Thursday, 13 September 2012 as one of the highlights of the plastic industry’s national Clean-Up South Africa Week.
