A national drive during Clean-up and Recycle Week (September 16-21) aims to change how South Africans think about recycling their used packaging. It will also uncover some critical insights into what inspires consumers’ recycling behaviour.

The “Find Your Reason to Recycle” campaign will feature interactive public areas in Cape Town and Johannesburg, where collection and recycling sector representatives will engage the public in an interactive game. The “play-and-win” game will probe participants’ various reasons for recycling.

Concurrently, an online docu-series featuring short, easy-to-digest episodes will be launched to debunk recycling myths. The series will unpack the basics of packaging in South Africa for consumers, from labelling to the collection and recycling system.

The drive is spearheaded by Petco, the country’s longest-standing producer responsibility organisation. Petco administers schemes for various types of post-consumer packaging and helps its members take responsibility for their packaging from its design to its disposal.

Petco CEO Cheri Scholtz explained that the drive aimed to engage consumers in a meaningful conversation about the personal and societal importance of collecting and recycling packaging and was tailored to consumers’ diverse reasons for recycling.

“In South Africa, where concerns like climate change often take a back seat to more immediate challenges such as unemployment, Petco’s ‘Find Your Reason to Recycle’ campaign is uniquely positioned to make a difference,” Scholtz said.

Scholtz said she hoped the campaign and docu-series would help change South Africans’ collective mindset and help people realise that recyclable packaging was too valuable to end up in landfill.

“Everyone has a role to play in making sure that packaging stays in the system and out of landfill, starting with the design of packaging, the provision of infrastructure by municipalities, the collection of the packaging, and the processing of recyclable materials into new products and packaging.

“Consumers can support this value chain by simply separating their recyclable packaging from general household waste,” said Scholtz, adding that there were many role players and “we all need to work together”.

As part of the campaign, custom-built units with interactive screens will be set up in prominent malls in Cape Town and Johannesburg and manned by recycling and collection sector representatives. There, consumers can “find their reason to recycle and win” while receiving practical tips on separating recyclable materials from general waste at home. Participation incentives will include subscriptions to private recycling collection services, shopping vouchers for Petco retail members Pick ’n Pay and Woolworths, as well as limited-edition shopping bags made from recycled PET plastic bottles.

“At the end of the campaign, we’ll be able to analyse the data from the interactive screens. The data will help us better understand what drives consumers in South Africa to recycle. Hopefully, this campaign will encourage people to start recycling and living more sustainably,” Scholtz said.

The online docu-series, Unpack, will be launched on Petco’s YouTube channel on 16 September. It covers topics such as why packaging is needed, what recycling symbols and labels mean, and the value of recycling. The series also explores the journey of recyclable packaging after it is placed in the recycling bin.

“We want to acknowledge that diverse motivations for recycling exist for different South Africans. There are many reasons and benefits which appeal to different consumers, which means that whoever and wherever you are, you can do it; you can recycle.

“When we help consumers unpack their reasons for recycling, we encourage and motivate them, and there is an impact on the system and a social shift towards sustainability.”

“This Clean-Up and Recycle Week, Petco invites all South Africans to find their reason to recycle. Whether it’s for the environment, the economy, or the community, every reason matters. By working together, we can keep resources in the economy, build and develop collection and recycling infrastructure, create job opportunities, encourage innovation in packaging, and keep packaging out of the environment. This all leads to a more sustainable future,” said Scholtz.

Find Petco’s new docu-series, Unpack, on its YouTube channel from 16 September: https://www.youtube.com/@Petco.Official.

Engage with Petco’s “Find Your Reason to Recycle” interactive campaign at the following malls in Johannesburg: Rosebank Mall, East Rand Mall, and Maponya Mall. In Cape Town, find it at Westgate Mall, N1 City and Canal Walk.

SUSTAINABLY SPEAKING: This Clean-up and Recycle Week (16-22 September), Petco CEO Cheri Scholtz says the organisation is aiming to get consumers to think critically about recycling and what it means to their fellow citizens.

SUSTAINABILITY DRIVE: This Clean-up and Recycle Week (16-22 September), South Africa’s longest-standing producer responsibility body, Petco, aims to get consumers to think critically about recycling and what it means to their fellow citizens.