Soft plastics recycling
Householders can drop off clean, dry soft plastic packaging at the Anglesea transfer station.
Soft plastics are items that can be easily scrunched in your hand, such as bread bags, chip packets, bubble wrap, plastic bags, and cling films. They also include some thicker plastics like pet food bags, squeeze pouches, and mesh produce bags, like those holding onions and oranges.
Accepted soft plastics
What soft plastics are accepted?
Soft plastics labelled with any of these icons:
and soft plastic bags and wrappers such as:
- Biscuit wrappers (but not the clear tray that holds biscuits)
- Bread bags
- Bubble wrap (clear and coloured)
- Cereal bags (the bag that holds the cereal)
- Chip packets
- Citrus netting bags (remove metal clips)
- Chocolate & other confectionery wrappers/bags
- Cling wrap/plastic film
- Coffee bean bags with zip lock (remove zip lock)
- Condiment sachets
- Document sleeves
- Fresh fruit and veggie produce bags
- Frozen food bags
- Garden fertiliser bags (must be empty)
- Ice cream/icy pole wrappers (no sticks)
- Magazine and newspaper clear wrapping
- Mail satchels (plastic only with labels removed if possible)
- Mesh bags (the ones holding oranges, onions)
- Muesli bar wrappers
- Newspaper/magazine wrap
- Pasta and noodle packets
- Pet food bags
- Pet food bags with zip lock (remove zip lock)
- Plastic food wrap eg cling wrap, glad wrap etc.
- Plastic wrapping from paper towels and toilet paper
- Reusable ‘green’ shopping bags
- Plastic shopping bags (from retailers)
- Potting mix bags (empty)
- Rice bags (both plastic & woven)
- Silver-lined bags from chips, confectionery etc.
- Six-pack ring (the soft flexible plastic only)
- Snap lock bags (remove the snap lock)
- Squeeze pouches (clean & remove hard plastic lid & spout)
- Veggie produce bags
- Wine bladders (remove the hard plastic spout)
- Wrappers from chocolate bars & lollies
- Zip lock bags (remove the zip lock)
What soft plastics are NOT accepted?
Soft plastic packaging marked as PET, PVC, PS, nylon, or that has these icons:
These plastics items are NOT accepted:
- Adhesive (sticky) tape
- Biodegradable labelled plastics
- Balloons
- Bottles/cans
- Bottle tops
- Cellophane
- Compostable labelled plastic
- Desiccant sachets (for absorbing moisture)
- Drinking straws
- Elastic bands
- Face masks
- Fruit stickers
- Foil
- Hard plastic containers eg biscuit trays, fruit punnet trays
- Hosiery (stockings)
- Laminated paper
- Nylon bags
- Plastic lined-paper eg coffee cups
- Rubber/latex gloves
- Rubber bands
- Silicone food storage bags
- Soy sauce (fish-shaped) packet (takeaway)
- Tea & coffee bags
- Tinsel
- Tomato sauce packet (takeaway)
How much can I drop off for free?
The service is open to households only – we cannot accept commercial quantities.
Householders can drop off up to 0.5m3 (equivalent of 5 large household garbage bags) for free. Larger amounts will incur a $18/m3 fee to help cover recycling costs.
Preparing your soft plastics for drop-off
Do I need to bag my soft plastics?
Yes. Collect soft plastics in a bread bag or similar, and tie the bag shut (no clips or string). Bagging helps prevent litter at the Anglesea site when staff handle plastics for baling.
Do I need to wash my soft plastics?
No, but they must be clean and dry with all food residue removed. Soft plastics with liquids, paint, glue, food or heavy contamination won’t be accepted – put these in your landfill bin (red lid).
Can I leave stickers on bags?
A few paper stickers (like on bread bags) are fine. Remove hard plastics lids, spouts and zip-locks.
Drop-off locations
Take your soft plastics to Anglesea Transfer Station
Take your clean and dry soft plastics to:
Anglesea Transfer Station
50 Coalmine Road
Open 9am to 4pm every day (except Christmas Day)
The gatehouse staff will direct you to the drop-off point. Please do not leave bags of soft plastics on or beside the collection cages, as this creates litter.
Why not other drop-off locations?
Soft plastics are not accepted at the Messmate Road drop-off, or the Lorne and Winchelsea transfer stations.
Recyclers require the soft plastics to be stored undercover to keep them dry, and Messmate Road doesn’t have suitable infrastructure.
We’ll consider adding collection bins at Lorne and Winchelsea transfer stations once the Anglesea site is running smoothly.
What if I can't get to Anglesea?
Soft plastics don’t belong in your yellow-lid recycling bin – they contaminate recycling loads and are sent to landfill, increasing costs for our ratepayers. If you can’t visit the Anglesea transfer station, ask a neighbour or friend to drop them off, or put them in your landfill bin (red lid).
Can I take soft plastics to a supermarket?
No. The REDcycle collection bins are no longer available locally. A limited trial is running in some Melbourne supermarkets, but not in Surf Coast Shire.
What happens next?
Where does the soft plastics go?
They are baled at Anglesea and sent to Melbourne processors to be recycled into soft plastics, road materials, or converted into gas for energy.
Results of the 2024 soft plastics trial
Council’s soft plastics drop-off trial in August 2024 was an outstanding success with 890 kilograms of plastic packaging (that’s the equivalent weight of a small car) baled and sent to a recycler in Melbourne.
Residents were invited to collect soft plastics purchased during July, and then drop them off for free at Council’s waste facilities over three days in early August.
Almost 500 residents dropped off soft plastics in 1,328 bags of varying sizes during the three days. 367 people who participated in the trial also provided feedback via an online survey.
According to their feedback:
- 80% of the soft plastic was collected in the month of July.
- 12% of participants have been collecting soft plastics since the closure of the REDCycle program in November 2022.
- Packaging from food accounted for most soft plastics, followed by packaging from online purchases e.g. bubble wrap & air pillows.