Name

Soft Plastics Stewardship Australia

Legal name

Soft Plastics Stewardship Australia

Website

https://spsa.au

Company type

Private

Founded year

2022

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Product Stewardship and Recycling Services

NAICS

Materials Recovery Facilities (56292), Materials Recovery Facilities (562920)

SIC

Refuse Systems (4953)

akta.pro primary industry

Plastics Sorting & Recovery Facilities (PRF) (EUAIADAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Reusable Packaging & Refill Systems (Returnable Transport Items, Deposit/DRS Ops) (EUAIANAE), Packaging Recovery & Closed-Loop Programs (Take-Back, Deposit-Return, EPR Support) (IMALAMAF), Post-Consumer Plastic Collection & Sorting (MRF/PRF, Bale Supply) (EUAIAKAA), Circular Economy & Waste/Materials Reporting (Zero waste, packaging) (EUAHAJAL)

Keywords

• Soft plastic recycling
• Product stewardship scheme
• Packaging levy collection
• Circular economy services
• Kerbside collection programs

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Supply Chain, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Scheme Levy from Brand Owners: SPSA collects levies from brand owners (manufacturers) and retailers based on the amount of consumer soft plastic they put into the Australian market. Levies fund collection, sorting, processing, and re-manufacturing efforts. The levy may be eco-modulated in the future to incentivize packaging redesign.
2. Minimum Levy: Scheme Participants agree to pay a Scheme Levy and Minimum Levy, which may be passed on by a Scheme Participant as part of their price.
3. Scheme Supporter Contributions: Financial contributions based on confidential soft plastic footprint from brands and retailers joining as Scheme Supporters. Funding covers collection, recycling, and re-manufacturing efforts.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Soft Plastics Stewardship Australia (SPSA) operates an independent, industry-led, not-for-profit product stewardship scheme that collects levies from brand owners and retailers based on the soft plastic packaging volume they place on the Australian market. These funds finance the collection, sorting, processing, and re-manufacturing of post-consumer soft plastics through more than 700 retail drop-off points and kerbside bag-in-bin collections across multiple states. The scheme is authorized by the ACCC for eight years and supports both mechanical and advanced chemical recycling to produce recycled feedstock for new packaging.

Product overview

Soft Plastics Stewardship Australia (SPSA) operates a single unified product: a national soft plastics collection and recycling stewardship scheme. The scheme is funded by levies collected from brand owners and retailers based on their soft plastic footprint, and these funds are used to bridge economic gaps across the recycling supply chain — covering collection, sorting, and processing of soft plastics. SPSA offers two primary collection pathways: retailer drop-off points (in-store collections at Woolworths, Coles, and Aldi with over 500 stores) and kerbside bag-in-bin collections (operating in nine councils across NSW, SA, and Victoria). The scheme is complemented by The Global Stewardship Playbook, a seven-part webinar series on producer responsibility best practices.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Quantifiable outcome

• Processing capacity of 20,000+ tonnes annually, nearly 3× REDcycle's peak
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

18 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Australian Packaging Covenant Organisation (APCO)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 12 November 2025Formalized Letter of Intent partnership aligning APCO's leadership in packaging design, labelling, and reporting with SPSA's focus on collection, recycling, and end-market development. Together they are building an integrated approach to soft plastic that delivers stronger environmental, economic, and social outcomes for Australia. APCO CEO Chris Foley participates in SPSA's Global Stewardship Playbook webinar series.
• The Packaging Forum NZminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for the Global Stewardship Playbook webinar series, bringing together Australasian stakeholders to learn from European product stewardship expertise. Co-hosted initiative with SPSA and APCO.
• Planet ArkcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration to establish SPSA's Stakeholder Advisory Council, fostering collaboration and engagement from stakeholders across the soft plastics supply chain. Planet Ark's research showing 79% of Australians support the scheme informs SPSA's public engagement strategy.
• Extended Producer Responsibility Alliance (EXPRA)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerEXPRA's CEO Joachim Quoden, the globally recognized authority on robust stewardship schemes including European Commission advisory role, featured in SPSA's Global Stewardship Playbook Session 1 covering 10 Golden Rules for effective product stewardship.
• Verpact (Netherlands)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNetherlands' government-approved Producer Responsibility Organisation achieving 88% packaging recycling/reuse in 2023, featured in SPSA's Global Stewardship Playbook Session 4 to share governance and funding models.
• Fost Plus (Belgium)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerBelgium's national approved mandatory PRO for consumer packaging, high-performing global leader. Established 1994, manages €336M annual budget. Featured in Session 2 of Global Stewardship Playbook as potential model for Australia.
• CITEO (France)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFrench producer responsibility organization established in 1992, pioneered eco-modulated fee approach (bonus and malus). Featured in Session 6 of Global Stewardship Playbook on recycled content regulations.
• EkoKom (Czechia)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCzechia's PRO coordinating 22,000 producer customers, 6,600 councils, and 147 sorting facilities since 1997. Featured in Session 7 of Global Stewardship Playbook on keeping recyclers viable.
• One Planet ConsultingcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHelen Millicer, Principal of One Planet Consulting, is SPSA's Expert Advisor and co-host of The Global Stewardship Playbook webinar series, drawing on insights from her Churchill Fellowship and 30 years of leadership in circularity and climate policy.
• iQRenewminorOthersAwarded $9.1M by Australian and NSW governments to upgrade recycling facility. One of SPSA's sorting and recycling partners operating in NSW.
• APR PlasticsminorOthersVictoria-based plastics recycling company that gained EPA licence for soft plastics recycling operations. SPSA's sorting and recycling partner.
• APR KerbsideminorOthersKerbside collection partner operating in various councils in Victoria, delivering soft plastics collection services under the SPSA scheme.
• CleanawayminorOthersMajor waste management company partnered with Viva Energy on hard-to-recycle plastic trials. Listed as SPSA's sorting and recycling partner with operations in Victoria.
• Curby ProgramminorOthersKerbside bag-in-bin collection program operating in NSW councils in partnership with SPSA. Part of expanding national collection infrastructure.
• Central Adelaide Waste and Recycling Authority (CAWRA)minorOthersCouncil waste authority in South Australia facilitating soft plastics collection for City of Adelaide, City of Port Adelaide Enfield, and City of Charles Sturt councils.
• Halve WasteminorOthersWaste management group coordinating soft plastics recycling trials for regional NSW and Victorian councils including Albury, Alpine Shire, Wodonga, and Indigo Shire.
• Soft Plastic TaskforcecoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorRetailer-led coalition comprising Woolworths, Coles, and Aldi that ran pilot in-store soft plastics collections. SPSA is building on this work and plans to take over and expand the instore collection program following ACCC authorization.
• Australian Food and Grocery Council (AFGC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLed the National Plastic Recycling Scheme (NPRS) with kerbside collection trials across 9 council areas. SPSA builds on NPRS learnings and AFGC's industry networks. Paris Golden from McCormick serves as non-executive director of AFGC.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Regional players

• Cleanaway Waste Management: Australia's largest waste management company. Cleanaway is a sorting and recycling partner to SPSA, operating competing infrastructure in the same geography with overlapping capabilities in kerbside and MRF services.
• The Packaging Forum NZ: New Zealand product stewardship forum and SPSA partner in the Global Stewardship Playbook webinar series. Comparable to SPSA in mission and structure, with overlapping trans-Tasman collaboration.

Broad incumbents

• CITEO (France): French producer responsibility organization established in 1992, pioneered eco-modulated fee approach (bonus/malus). Featured in SPSA's webinar series on recycled content regulations.
• Verpact (Netherlands): Netherlands' government-approved Producer Responsibility Organisation achieving 88% packaging recycling/reuse in 2023. Verpact is a featured model in SPSA's playbook and a benchmark for what mature EPR schemes can achieve.
• Veolia Australia and New Zealand: Global environmental services major operating in Australia. SPSA's Chair (Kate Dryden) was previously at Veolia ANZ, and Veolia's recycling infrastructure overlaps with SPSA's collection/processing scope.
• Fost Plus (Belgium): Belgium's national approved mandatory PRO for consumer packaging, established 1994, managing €336M annual budget. Featured in SPSA's Global Stewardship Playbook as a potential model for Australia.

Others

• Planet Ark Environmental Foundation: Australian environmental not-for-profit that founded the Stakeholder Advisory Council alongside SPSA. Planet Ark provides research, public engagement, and educational infrastructure for the scheme.

Emerging players

• REDcycle (predecessor, defunct): REDcycle operated Australia's previous major soft plastics in-store collection scheme via retail drop-off until its collapse in 2022. SPSA is explicitly building on and superseding REDcycle's operating model with greater scale and funding resilience.

Direct peers

• Australian Packaging Covenant Organisation (APCO): Australia's largest product stewardship organisation for packaging. APCO is a direct peer/partner to SPSA, operating across the broader packaging lifecycle with ~40 funding signatories; SPSA is focused specifically on soft plastics collection and recycling.
• Container Exchange (COEX) / Containers for Change: Queensland's beverage container deposit/PRO scheme. COEX is a directly comparable Australian product stewardship organisation with a similar funding model (levies on producers/retailers), and SPSA's leadership (Aaron Rodman, Ken Noye) come directly from COEX.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/softplasticstewardshipau

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Soft Plastics Stewardship Australia