It is encouraging that the Coles and Woolworths supermarkets in Benalla both now have REDcycle bins in their foyers to collect soft plastic items for recycling. A Melbourne-based company RedPlas has been collecting and recycling soft plastics for a number of years now, and turning them into products such as benches, signs, boardwalks and bollards. They collect plastics that cannot be recycled in our yellow bins, and that would otherwise end up in landfill.

Items they want include bread bags, silver lined chip packets, clean cling wrap, frozen food and fresh produce bags, bubble wrap, plastic Australia Post satchels and zip lock bags to name just a few. But they DON’T WANT plastic bottles or containers, drinking straws, glass, polystyrene, paper or cardboard. The REDcycle website shows what plastics can be recycled through the REDcycle bins at Coles and Woolies. Basically if it is soft plastic that can be scrunched up into a ball, it can go in the REDcycle bin. A detailed list of what and what NOT to REDcycle is attached below.
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Kathy Costello