2023 APCO Annual Awards Winners
Friday, 3 November 2023
The Australian Packaging Covenant Organisation (APCO) last night announced the winners of their 2023 Annual Awards. The ceremony was dedicated to honouring businesses that have shown excellence in sustainable packaging design and innovation.
The highly coveted Best of Reporting Excellence Award went home with electronics company Belkin Limited. Belkin investigated how its packaging is managed post-consumer purchase. The company used this data to develop packaging that aligns with the 2025 National Packaging Targets for single-use plastic reduction, recycled content, and the use of compostable materials. These learnings were also applied to Belkin products sold globally.
Bryan McKay, Head of Packaging at Woolworths Group, was recognised as this year’s Sustainable Champion for his efforts to scale sustainable packaging initiatives which have materially contributed to packaging circularity within the FMCG industry.
The Our Packaging Future (OPF) Awards, celebrate industry achievements in consumer education, improved recycling systems and end-market developments.
Among the winners of the OPF Awards was CHEP Australia who took home the Reuse Award for Reuse Network for Today and the Future. New and significantly upgraded service centres with state-of-the-art technology to repair, wash and condition CHEP pallets, bins and containers were opened in Perth, Adelaide, Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne, adding to the 55+ locations across Australia.
These critical service centres are the focal point of enabling the supply chain to support thousands of companies to deliver their goods every day.
Another industry leader, Coles Group, was awarded the OPF Industry Education Award for their supplier packaging enablement program aimed to address key supplier knowledge gaps in packaging sustainability education.
Officeworks received the OPF Consumer Education Award for their ‘Greener Choices’ product range, refreshing and relaunching it as the ‘People and Planet Positive’ product range. As part of the refresh, Officeworks introduced a Reuse and Refill category, and a Recyclable category.
Other Award winners included Tetra Pak Oceania and saveBOARD who were recognised in the OPF Improved Recycling Systems Award for working in partnership to launch Australia’s first beverage carton recycling facility in Warragamba, NSW.
Also recognised was Brother International Australia in the OPF Sustainable Packaging Guidelines Implementation Award for its transformative journey to pioneer sustainable packaging practices, creating packaging with a clear recovery solution in mind and incorporating recycled content into its packaging.
Last but not least, SC Johnson won the OPF Recycled Content Award for its development of Windex® Original and Windex® Ammonia-Free bottles made from 100% Recovered Coastal Plastic (plastic collected on land within 50km of an ocean) thanks to the partnership between SC Johnson and Plastic Bank.
APCO CEO, Chris Foley, applauded the winners stating: “It has been a great pleasure to hear the success stories of collaboration, innovation and leadership from this year’s finalists and winners. The Awards demonstrate the industry’s progress to meeting the 2025 National Packaging Targets and more broadly how we are shaping the future of packaging here in Australia. It is empowering to see organisations across the industry laying the foundations for a stronger packaging system beyond 2025, and making tangible progress toward implementing a circular economy for packaging. I can’t wait to see the ground-breaking achievements and positive change that emerge over the next year.”
Over 200 guests from the packaging, waste and recycling industries gathered to celebrate the achievements of the winners (full list below) in sustainable packaging transformation over the past 12 months.
This year, APCO partnered with the Banksia Foundation, who brought a panel of independent judges from across the packaging industry value chain.
Industry Sector Award winners
The winners for the Industry Sector Awards were announced the morning of the APCO Awards, 2 November: APCO’s Industry Sector Awards recognise high performing APCO Members based on their annual report. These members promote sustainable packaging design and innovation across a broad range of sectors including electronics, retail, food and beverage and manufacturing.
Full report score winners
- Agriculture and Nurseries - Rivalea
- Chemicals, Hardware, and Machinery – Clorox Australia
- Electronics – Belkin
- Food and Beverage – Arnott's Group
- General Merchandise and Apparel – HBI Holdings Australia
- Healthcare and Scientific - Coty Australia
- Logistics and Warehousing - CHEP Australia
- Packaging Manufacturer and Supplier – Ball & Doggett
SME Winners
- Agriculture and Nurseries – Quintis Sandalwood
- Chemicals, Hardware, and Machinery – Insulect Australia
- Electronics - COMSOL
- Food and Beverage – Berton Vineyards
- General Merchandise and Apparel - KeepCup
- Healthcare and Scientific - Advanced Skin Technology
- Packaging Manufacturer and Supplier – O F Packaging
Our Packaging Future Award Winners
The Our Packaging Future Awards highlight promising, innovative projects from across the industry, with achievements in consumer education, improved recycling systems and end-market development. Submissions are assessed against three key pillars: innovation, accessibility and impact.
- SPGs Implementation – Brother International Australia
- Reuse – CHEP Australia
- Industry Education – Coles Group
- Consumer Education - Officeworks
- Improved Recycling Systems – Tetra Pak Oceania and saveBOARD
- Recycled Content – SC Johnson
Best of Reporting Excellence Award Winner
This prestigious award celebrates the highest performing members out of the APCO Industry Sector Awards winners.
- Best of Reporting Excellence – Belkin Limited
Sustainable Champion Award Winner
This award is given to individuals that are making a tangible impact on sustainable packaging in Australia. It celebrates proactivity and leadership in packaging circularity including improvements in recycling, education and research and development.
- Sustainable Champion – Bryan McKay - Head of Packaging, Woolworths