NEXTGEN: GCP TOUR
The NextGen are passionate for PP5 Recycling By Elliott Akintola On Thursday 30th June 2022, the next generation of horticulture professionals gathered to tour Garden City Plastics (GCP) manufacturing facility, and Polymer Processors recycling facility. Nearly 40 members of the NextGen association from leading horticultural businesses in Victoria attended the event which kicked off at the GCP facility in Dandenong South, Victoria. GCP’s Victorian Sales and Marketing Manager, Greg Carrick, started the event by delivering a presentation to the group on the need to close the loop on plastic recycling in the horticultural industry. He outlined GCP, Norwood, and Polymer Processors, collaboration to ensure that all polypropylene pots, containers, trays, and labels marked with the recycling number ‘5’ are collected within a single stream for recycling and manufacturing into new products for the industry. He highlighted that polypropylene (pp5) is a versatile material with good chemical properties that makes it very sustainable for the industry. GCP has been using recycled materials in its production facility since inception over 4 decades ago, all black containers produced for the industry include recycled materials. Another important message was the distinctions that exist with other types of plastics used in the industry. An understanding of these differences is necessary to ensure that there is no contamination of the recycling stream. For instance, plug trays and some punnets are made from Polystyrene (PS6) which is a different material and should not be collected in the same stream
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with Polypropylene (PP5) material. In the future, businesses will need to take more responsibility of their waste and the overall impact of their systems on the environment. It is crucial that we individually and collectively play our role in ensuring that we save as many plastics going out into the stream. Through, the GCP, Norwood, and Polymer Processors PP5 initiative, recycling cages have been made available at different retail and commercial nursery sites. Once the business meets the criteria for having a bin, they are expected to implement the 3-step process of:
» Check – that the material is pp5 » Tap – media or substrate out of the container » Stack – the containers with or without their labels, to maximise the bin volume These steps are critical to ensure that customers can return used pots for recycling and not to kerb side recycling streams where they are lost to landfill. The collection bins are delivered free of charge to the retail and commercial collection locations