“Many beer lovers are familiar with the can clips that hold four and six packs of brews together, but most probably don’t realise that the clips are made of such sturdy material that they can be reused more than 50 times before being recycled and made into new clips,” said Endeavour Group Quality & Sustainability Manager Diarmaid O’Mordha.

“Can clips are a great option for a circular economy, but there have been no multi-state recycling options available for customers where they can return the clips so many end up in landfill, which is why we have initiated this industry-wide reuse and recycling scheme,” he added.

In September, the company rolled out a beer can clip reuse and recycling program in selected BWS and Dan Murphy’s stores on the Eastern Seaboard, becoming the first Australian retailer to initiate and develop a circular scheme for the reuse and recycle of can clips.

And now, the recycling scheme is coming to Western Australia, thanks to local founder of sustainability start-up Donut Waste, Sharka Hornakova.

“I read about Endeavour Group’s initiative and was super excited that this is finally happening, especially because collection of can clips is mostly about reuse which is much higher on the waste hierarchy than recycling.”

“I read about Endeavour Group’s initiative and was super excited that this is finally happening, especially because collection of can clips is mostly about reuse which is much higher on the waste hierarchy than recycling. Then I found out that West Australian BWS and Dan Murphy’s stores didn’t have the collection units yet. So I thought to myself: ‘Why can’t I do it? I’m already driving around picking up coffee grounds, might as well pick those up’!” she said.

Her partner Adrian Godwin is coincidentally Head Brewer at Mash Brewing, and he managed to organise a meeting for Sharka with Endeavour Group’s Quality & Sustainability Manager Diarmaid O’Mordha.

“On the Eastern Seaboard, we work with local brewers as well as a company called East Coast Canning that collects our can clips from stores, and we were looking for a partner in Western Australia, so Sharka’s timing couldn’t have been better. Best of all, we love working with people who are as passionate about sustainability as we are,” Diarmaid said.

The way it will work is that customers place used can clips in the can clip collection units in selected BWS and Dan Murphy’s stores, which are then picked up by Sharka.

“We will collect, wash and pack them and sell them back to breweries for a discounted price. Our aim is to make enough money to cover our expenses so we can make the whole process economically viable. Finding solutions that financially stack up is very important on a local as well as global scale to move us towards the circular economy,” Sharka explained.

Once the can clips have been reused to the end of their lifespan, they will be sent to Claw Environmental a local Western Australian plastics recycler, where they are converted into HDPE resin (high-density polyethylene), which can then be returned to PakTech – the company that produces the can clips – so they can create more clips.

The WA can clip reuse and recycling program is a partnership between Endeavour Group, the Independent Brewers Association (IBA), Donut Waste, Claw Environmental and PakTech.

The PakTech can clips are already made from 100% recycled HDPE material that has been used by consumers and collected for recycling like milk jugs, thus already providing a second life to the material.

West Australian customers can find the recycling units in the following BWS and Dan Murphy’s stores. Endeavour Group is aiming to roll out the circular scheme in more stores later this financial year.

• Dan Murphy’s Hyde Park – Cnr Bulwer and, Fitzgerald St, West Perth WA 6005
• Dan Murphy’s Innaloo, 401 Scarborough Beach Rd, Innaloo WA 6018
• Dan Murphy’s Bicton, 378 Canning Hwy, Bicton WA 6157
• BWS Mt Hawthorn, 223 Scarborough Beach Rd, Mount Hawthorn WA 6016
• BWS Bullcreek, Bullcreek Shopping Centre, 44 Benningfield Rd, Bull Creek WA 6149
• BWS Perth, 231 Hay St, East Perth WA 6004

For more information, interviews or images, please contact media@edg.com.au or hello@donutwaste.com.au.