Learners leading the Eco-Friendly Movement

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A campaign to teach pupils about the importance of recycling challenges learners to collect and sort as much recyclable waste as possible. 

The initiative led by Albany officially launched the Albany Collect-A-Pack (CAP) programme, which will see more than 900,000 learners across 500 primary schools in South Africa learn the importance of recycling.

Since then, CAP is currently being introduced and rolled out, and Khumalo Primary School in Katlehong, Ntuthuko Primary School in Germiston, and Nageng Primary School in Vosloorus are included within Ekurhuleni.

The programme was initially launched on Global Recycling Day on 18 March at Beacon View Primary School in the Western Cape.

This will also educate pupils about recycling, its practical applications, and the impact it has on the environment, their lives, and their communities.

Lorraine De Graaff, Marketing Director at Albany, said; “Young South Africans are increasingly aware of how their actions impact the environment and, by extension, their own lives and the communities they belong to.

“They are actively seeking ways to safeguard their futures. Our role is to equip young people in communities with the necessary resources and support to make a meaningful difference.”

This is a school curriculum-aligned programme that blends practical and theoretical learning to inspire learners from Grade R to Grade 7 to engage in waste recycling actively.

Developed by Albany, in collaboration with an accredited South African school curriculum educationalist, Albany Collect-A-Pack is a comprehensive Life Skills/Life Orientation learning module.

Encouraging learners to recycle

This encourages pupils and educators to collect plastic bread packaging for recycling.

Top-performing schools each term will receive R100,000, which will be used to fund much-needed upgrades to their school facilities.

Plastic bread packaging collected will be upcycled through community upliftment initiatives to offer income-generating opportunities. 

In addition to recycling, the programme educates on food safety and good hygiene, equipping young learners with essential knowledge to enhance their well-being and adopt healthier habits.

Albany Collect-A-Pack will be extended to parents, community members and spaza stores, encouraging collective responsibility towards sustainability.

“By expanding our reach, we can significantly reduce the plastic waste that ends up along roads and in landfills, while fostering a strong sense of community and shared responsibility among South Africans,” said De Graaff.

It is believed that Tiger Brands is committed to reducing plastic packaging, increasing recycling rates and incorporating more recycled content into packaging.

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De Graaff added by saying as part of their updated 2030 targets, they are working towards ensuring that 80% of plastic packaging is recyclable or compostable and that all plastic packaging (by volume) contains at least 25% post-consumer content.

Tiger Brands supports the strategy of reduce-reuse-recycle and prioritises a circular economy design approach to developing packaging solutions for new products and in the renovation of old ones.