The Petco Awards is the premier national environmental awards initiative in South Africa, recognising excellence in reuse, recycling and waste minimisation among businesses, organisations, community groups and individuals within the South African packaging industry. Winners are recognised for embracing Extended Producer Responsibility, contributing to driving collection and recycling and reflecting the principles of sustainability, the Circular Economy, SMME development, design for recycling and the integration of the informal sector into the value chain.

We are planning to present the Petco Awards as part of our next AGM (June 2024; specific date and time to be confirmed). Subscribe to the Petco newsletter to receive further updates.

The Petco Awards are free to enter, and we welcome entries from both small and large organisations, businesses, community groups and individuals all over South Africa.

The deadline for submission of nominations is Friday 9 February 2024, at 5pm.

Please motivate your nomination comprehensively – this is of great help as often more than one nomination per category is received.

NOMINATION PROCESS:
Please submit the following to kara.levy@petco.co.za:

Completed nomination form (download the nomination form here: Word or PDF);

Supporting documentation (no more than 5 pages).

The 2024 Petco Awards categories are:

1. Environmental education and awareness initiative

About the award: This category looks to recognise initiatives led by organisations or individuals that stimulate innovative ideas that increase collection and recycling, and those public-facing campaigns that have successfully addressed a waste management challenge (e.g. such as waste and the waste hierarchy, anti-littering awareness, reducing reliance on landfill, increasing recycling, boosting reuse, or reducing waste-generating behaviour specifically amongst South African consumers).

Who should enter: Any private, corporate or government organisation within the South African waste, collection and recycling sectors that can demonstrate the successful implementation of a public-facing campaign e.g. in schools to reduce waste-generating behaviour.

2. Best community recycling initiative

About the award: This category recognises an individual or organisation whose ingenuity and perseverance have created and sustained successful business ventures or community projects in the collection or recycling industry that directly benefit and uplift the communities within which they operate.

Who should enter: Any community group initiatives or individuals who are involved in community collection and recycling projects that can demonstrate how they have raised awareness in their communities via ventures such as reuse, recycling, waste minimisation, educational talks and other recycling projects and, as such, have directly enriched their community.

3. Worth in your waste

About the award: This category recognises one specific waste picker or a group of waste pickers who have gone above and beyond to keep South Africa clean and keep valuable recyclable materials out of landfills whilst making a living for themselves. This person or group will also have worked to change the negative stigma and perception that many people have about waste pickers.

Who should enter: A waste picker or a group of waste pickers who have made large strides in informing their communities about collecting recyclables and diverting precious recyclables from landfills.

4. Entrepreneur

About the award: This category recognises a man, woman or other individual whose entrepreneurial insight, ingenuity and perseverance have created and sustained a successful, growing business venture in the collection or recycling industry.

Who should enter: Owners and managers of small, micro and medium-sized enterprises, focused on collecting and recycling packaging, that have shown innovation and best practice in their approaches to drive recycling and waste minimisation behaviour in their business as well as in their communities. Those who can systematically demonstrate how they have changed their circumstances through collecting recyclables, as well as the impact on their environment for the better, will receive preferential attention.

5. Kerbside collection and sorting

About the award: Recognises the best kerbside collection projects/separation at source (S@S) initiatives in South Africa. This category celebrates the longest-running, most effective and efficient, affordable, and best-executed projects, whether led by a small company or a corporate entity that has excelled in implementing effective separation at source initiatives.

Who should enter: Small companies, corporate entities or municipalities running kerbside collection projects/separation at source (S@S) initiatives that demonstrate longevity, efficiency, and excellence in waste management practices. Entrants should showcase their commitment to sustainable collection methods, cost-effectiveness, and innovation in sorting processes.

6. Local authority recycling innovation

About the award: This category recognises the importance of partnerships with municipalities and local and district authorities in encouraging waste reduction behaviour and helping to extract and capture value from resources that would be otherwise lost. Critically, as South Africa is running out of landfill space, strong partnerships with municipalities are required to decrease current illegal dumping behaviour and increase constituents’ access to recycling infrastructure.

Who should enter: Any local authority in South Africa that has used creative and innovative methods to drive the adoption of recycling and anti-littering behaviour, the implementation of IWMPs, provision of infrastructure and increase in waste prevention methods.

7. Recycling partnership gamechanger

About the award: This category recognises partnerships, including government (municipal, provincial or national), regulatory agencies, community organisations and private industry, that have successfully implemented game-changing initiatives, policies or programmes that advance collection, recycling and sustainability in South Africa. Examples include but are not limited to, increased recycling participation, targeted recycling or reuse awareness campaigns, or repurposing closed landfills. Motivations must include tangible examples of how the partnership has resulted in meaningful recycling outcomes or breakthroughs.

Who should enter: Combinations of waste management companies, recyclers, industry, businesses or compliance schemes. The entry must include at least two organisations from different sectors.

8. Excellence in material quality delivery

About the award: This category recognises the Small, Medium, and Micro-sized Enterprises (SMMEs) that have consistently delivered the highest quality collected recyclable material to recyclers in South Africa. This category also acknowledges suppliers e.g. buy-back centres within the value chain who contribute superior feedstock to contracted recyclers. The award emphasises the importance of maintaining the highest material quality standards throughout the collection and recycling value chain.

Who should enter: SMMEs or suppliers within the value chain who consistently deliver high-quality materials to recyclers. Entrants should demonstrate their commitment to maintaining superior material standards, contributing to sustainable and efficient recycling processes in South Africa.

9. Design for recycling

About the award: This category celebrates packaging that exemplifies the best of sustainability and has been designed with careful consideration of resources in mind. As such, packaging that incorporates recycled or renewable content, or which have improved the products’ compatibility with recycling infrastructure in South Africa will be considered. Factors such as reusability, end-of-life solutions, waste minimisation, closed-loop processes etc. will be taken into account. Who should enter: Brand owners, retailers, manufacturers, converters and designers that display high levels of innovation and expertise in addressing the technical and manufacturing challenges associated with responsible packaging design.

10. Technological innovation

About the award: This category identifies the use of technology and digitalisation in waste management and recycling. This could include innovations in sorting, processing, or any technological advancement that enhances efficiency and sustainability. The award aims to showcase how technology can revolutionise waste management practices and contribute to a more sustainable future.

Who should enter: Companies or individuals who have introduced innovative technologies in the field of waste management and recycling. Entrants should showcase how their technological solutions contribute to the advancement of sustainability and efficiency in waste management practices.

11. Product labelling excellence

About the award: This category acknowledges companies that have implemented robust and clear labelling practices on their products to inform consumers about what to do with their packaging when they are finished with it – ultimately facilitating recycling. This award recognises the role of effective product labelling in enhancing consumer awareness, encouraging responsible disposal, and promoting a circular economy.

Who should enter: Companies with exemplary product labelling practices that contribute to increased recycling rates. This award encourages entries from companies showcasing effective on-pack labelling strategies that enhance consumer awareness and participation in recycling initiatives.

12. Away-from-home collection and recycling

About the award: This category recognises a comprehensive collection and recycling initiative implemented at a large scale, in a public space, such as in the street, at transport junctions (bus, train, taxi ranks), shopping centres or events, with a focus on minimising environmental impact and promoting education. This award celebrates initiatives that have demonstrated measurable impact, scalability, and effective integration of collection and recycling and anti-littering into large-scale operations.

Who should enter: Shopping centre management, workplaces, municipalities, organisations or event organisers that have implemented and demonstrated a holistic and impactful initiative. Entrants should showcase the scale, innovation, and educational aspects of their initiatives.

13. Circular economy

About the award: This category recognises facilitation agencies or organisations that have demonstrated exceptional leadership and collaboration in facilitating the transition to a circular economy in South Africa. This award celebrates the impactful work of facilitators who bring together diverse stakeholders, conduct valuable research, and drive positive change through collective efforts and working groups.

Who should enter: Facilitation agencies, organisations, or initiatives that have played a pivotal role in fostering collaboration, research, and awareness to enhance the transition to a circular economy in South Africa, this can include waste management, design for recycling, labelling, collaboration, pilots, standards etc. Entrants should showcase the tangible outcomes and positive impacts achieved through their efforts.

Regards,

The Petco Team