South Africa’s journey towards a circular, waste-free economy took a major step forward this week with the official launch of Extrupet’s second bottle-to-bottle recycling plant and the first of its kind in the Western Cape.
Located at the company’s Propet facility in Cape Town, the new plant began production earlier this year and is now set to add 15 000 tonnes of recycled PET (rPET) plastic to the national market annually. It’s a milestone that industry leaders say will help strengthen local recycling ecosystems, support jobs, and keep valuable materials in use.
Speaking at the launch, Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment Dr Dion George called the new plant “a symbol of how South Africa can turn a crisis into an opportunity.”
“Plastic pollution is not only an environmental crisis, but a public health emergency,” he said. “With policy, vision, and partnership, plastic waste can become a driver of jobs, innovation, and inclusive growth.”
He noted that South Africa remains an active voice in global efforts to end plastic pollution through the United Nations Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee process, while leading locally by creating an enabling regulatory environment for circular business models.
Extrupet’s Joint Managing Director, Chandru Wadhwani, explained that the Cape Town expansion marks phase one of a two-part plan to double the company’s national food-grade rPET output.
“This line takes our total capacity from 30 000 to 45 000 tonnes this year. With phase two launching next year, we’ll reach 60 000 tonnes of rPET produced countrywide that meets international food-grade standards,” he said.
Wadhwani added that PET, or polyethylene terephthalate, commonly used to package soft drinks and bottled water, is one of the few truly circular and commercially viable plastic recycling solutions. Bottles can be safely processed back into new food-grade products, keeping material in circulation at its highest value for as long as possible. “With our increased rPET capacity, we will be able to process more plastic waste and strengthen South Africa’s position as a circular economy leader in Africa and the world,” he said. “This new plant can act as a beacon of hope in finding solutions to mitigate plastic pollution.”
For over two decades, Extrupet has worked with Petco, the country’s longest-standing producer responsibility organisation (PRO), to balance collection and recycling and stimulate demand for recycled end-use products. With roughly 70% of PET beverage bottles placed on the market by Petco members currently recycled, Wadhwani said there is much to be positive about despite the slow progress at the UN’s recent INC-5.2 session on a global plastics treaty.
“We are proud that South Africa has created extended producer responsibility legislation to address this issue,” he said. “It means producers and brand owners must take responsibility for their packaging waste across its entire life cycle, from design to disposal.”
Petco CEO Telly Chauke said the organisation’s role is to help producers meet their legislated recycling targets and support the development of the recycling value chain. “Infrastructure investments like this one ensure the availability of food-grade rPET at scale for local producers, who must also meet increasing targets for including recycled content in their packaging,” she said.
Chauke added that the Western Cape facility would have a direct benefit for the province’s agricultural exporters, whose plastic punnets destined for European markets now need to contain at least 25% certified rPET under new EU regulations.
“The economics need to work for recycling to succeed. Having facilities in key regions like the Western Cape reduces costs and strengthens the local value chain,” she said. “It’s not only up to government and business. Consumers can also make a difference by choosing recyclable packaging and separating waste at home to create clean feedstock for recycling plants.”
Extrupet’s new Western Cape facility stands as a powerful example of how collective commitment, innovation, and responsible policy can transform waste into opportunity — one recycled bottle at a time.
