MegaBanner-Right

MegaBanner-Left

LeaderBoad-Right

LeaderBoard-Left

Home » Featured IND » Western Cape leads the way in recycling

Western Cape leads the way in recycling

The Western Cape is the country’s leader in recycling PET plastic bottles, and its efforts were recently recognised by the national industry body for plastic recycling, PET Recycling Company (Petco).

Petco unveiled South Africa’s outstanding individuals and projects in the recycling movement when it announced a 6% year-on-year increase in the recycling of PET plastic bottles. These leaders are from different provinces, and have been noted for their work in promoting and practicing sustainability at the grassroots level.

Nine category winners are from the Western Cape, including nine-year-old Rocco da Silva and Franschhoek’s Jocelyn van der Ross.

Da Silva, who hails from Somerset West, started a club called The Future Kids Club, which encourages youth in the area to partake in monthly beach cleanups. Van der Ross overcame three fires and unemployment to run a recycling business.

Other winners from the Western Cape include a Hout Bay community project called Thrive, as well as Takunda Chitaka, an academic from the University of Cape Town (UCT). The environmental manager of Plastics SA, John Kieser, was also a winner.

The Drakenstein Municipality was also awarded for local authority recycling innovation.

Source: Petco

PET bottles are made of one of the few polymers that can be recycled into the same form – a new beverage bottle – again and again. This neatly closes the recycling loop and enables ‘cradle-to-cradle’ packaging solutions.

As with virgin PET, recycled PET (rPET) can be used to make many new products, including polyester staple fibre or filament used for apparel (clothing), home textiles (duvets, pillows, carpeting), automotive parts (carpets, sound insulation, boot linings, seat covers) and industrial end-use items (geotextiles and roof insulation), and new PET packaging and bottles for both food and non-food products. It is generally blended in a ratio of virgin PET to recycled, depending on the application required.

To enquire about Cape Business News' digital marketing options please contact sales@cbn.co.za

Related articles

New waste interceptors added to combat river pollution

To remove waste from the city’s waterbodies, the Water and Sanitation Directorate has invested R3 million into the installation of 20 waste interceptors in...

On track for growth – Western Cape launches Overberg Rail Freight Pilot

On 23 July 2025, Western Cape Mobility Minister, Isaac Sileku, hosted the launch of the Overberg Freight Rail Business Case and Implementation Plan pilot project in Bredasdorp.  The business case...

MUST READ

FUCHS LUBRICANTS SOUTH AFRICA Introduces Enhanced Distribution Strategy in the Western...

FUCHS LUBRICANTS SOUTH AFRICA is excited to announce a significant transformation in its distribution strategy within the Western Cape. This strategic shift marks a...

RECOMMENDED

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.

Strictly Necessary Cookies

Strictly Necessary Cookie should be enabled at all times so that we can save your preferences for cookie settings.

If you disable this cookie, we will not be able to save your preferences. This means that every time you visit this website you will need to enable or disable cookies again.