In 2024, Visy in New Zealand reached a significant milestone – reaching an average of 70% recycled content in its locally made glass bottles and jars. Bottle to bottle glass recycling supports a circular economy, reduces landfill and cuts emissions. It also highlights the success of New Zealand’s world class kerbside glass recycling system.
Visy's executive general manager of recycling, Tierry Lauren, explains more about the milestone.
As the resident recycling expert amongst my friends and family, I’ve been asked at countless BBQs whether people’s recycling really is recycled, or simply thrown away.
It helps when I’m drinking out of a glass bottle and can point to the progress we’ve been making.
For 2024, Visy proudly achieved an industry-leading milestone: an average of 70% recycled content in the glass we manufactured in New Zealand. This achievement places our glass packaging among the most sustainable in the world and is a powerful example of what’s possible when residents, councils, recyclers, manufacturers and food and beverage companies work together.
Building a truly circular economy in New Zealand depends on every part of the supply chain working together, from collection and processing to remanufacturing and consumption. When we work together across the system, we achieve greater outcomes that benefit not just individual businesses, but the environment and New Zealanders as a whole.
We manufacture over 700 million glass bottles and jars in New Zealand for the country’s iconic wineries, and local food and beverage companies each year.
Our local and secure supply chain keeps New Zealand businesses stocked with the packaging they need to keep supermarket shelves full and products exported across the world.
In 2021, our Chairman Anthony Pratt committed to achieving an average of 70% recycled content in Visy’s glass bottles and jars and New Zealand is the first country we operate in to reach this milestone.
This success would not have been possible without the ongoing collaboration with our partners across the glass recovery and recycling supply chain.
In particular, I want to acknowledge the hard work and dedication of councils and people doing the hard work of material collection across New Zealand.
Separating glass at the kerbside significantly reduces contamination from other materials – meaning more glass can be remanufactured into new bottles and jars. Thanks to your support, New Zealander’s can be confident that the bottles and jars they recycle can be turned into new bottles and jars, right at home.
Recycling doesn’t just divert glass from landfill, it also protects our precious natural resources and reduces energy use during remanufacturing. A Visy glass container made with 70% recycled content can be up to 30% less greenhouse gas intensive than a glass container made entirely from raw materials.
It’s not just a win for us, it’s a win for our partners, local community, and most importantly a win for the environment.
If you’d like to share the story of bottle-to-bottle recycling in New Zealand with your stakeholders, contact our marketing team at marketing@visy.com.au who can provide a stakeholder communications kit.
We’re committed to keeping even more glass out of landfill and at its highest and best use by partnering with our customers to increase the recycled content in their packaging and by encouraging even more New Zealand businesses to choose locally made glass.
I look forward to continuing this journey together, for a better world.
About the author
Visy executive general manager of recycling
Tierry is the Executive General Manager of Recycling at Visy, leading a team of over 500 people across more than 20 sites in Australia and New Zealand. Over the past 24 years, Tierry has held a variety of roles including business development, service delivery and operations.