We are focused on reducing waste across our value chain, in collaboration with our industry partners, suppliers, producers and customers, to help support the transition to a more circular economy.
Reducing waste to landfill
We have established resource recovery programs in place across our stores, distribution centres and manufacturing facilities to maximise recycling and divert waste from landfill, including cardboard, clear pallet wrap and commingle.
Once collected by our recycling partners these materials are turned into new products, such as new cardboard and recycled plastics. Our resource recovery options differ in each state and suburb, according to what recycling infrastructure is available in that area.
Waste contributes to Coles’ total emissions footprint, and we view our waste reduction activities in the context of our overall efforts to decarbonise and reduce our impact on the environment.
Reducing food waste
As a food retailer, we love food and do not want it to go to waste.
Coles supports Australia’s commitment to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal to halve food waste by 2030. We also have a comprehensive food waste reduction strategy aligned with our overarching sustainability ambitions.
Since 2019, every Coles supermarket and distribution centre has at least one food waste diversion solution available, ranging from donating to food rescue organisations such as SecondBite and Foodbank, or to farmers and animal or wildlife services, food waste recycling collections, and in-store food waste processors.
We have partnered with SecondBite since 2011 and Foodbank since 2003 to rescue unsold, edible food that would otherwise have gone to waste. To date, we have donated the equivalent of 296 million meals to SecondBite and 47.5 million meals to Foodbank.
Our range of ‘I’m Perfect’ fruit and vegetables celebrates produce that may be flawed in appearance but provides tasty quality at good value. It also helps ensure that a greater portion of crops grown is picked and used, helping to reduce food waste.
Product stewardship
Coles is committed to finding pathways for materials to be recycled and recirculated back into the economy for further use, supporting a shift towards a more circular economy. Coles actively supports and participates in product stewardship initiatives that help reduce the end-of-life impacts of products sold in our stores.
Battery binsCollapsed
Coles is an accredited participant of the Battery Stewardship Council Scheme, B-Cycle, launched in Australia in 2022. We currently have 850 household battery recycling bins across our supermarket network to provide customers with a safe, convenient, and effective way to recycle batteries, reduce household waste and prevent potentially hazardous materials from entering landfills. During FY25, 369 tonnes of used batteries were returned to Coles stores by customers. This is the equivalent of more than 15 million AA batteries.
Container deposit schemeCollapsed
With Container Deposit Schemes (CDS) now available in all states and territories there are now 279 container return sites linked to Coles stores nationally. Consumers depositing containers at these locations can receive vouchers redeemable in Coles supermarkets1.
1 Reverse Vending Machine sites, linked to Coles stores, are only available in Victoria, Tasmania, WA, NSW and Queensland.
Packaging
Packaging plays a vital role in safeguarding products during transportation, preserving freshness, preventing contamination, and minimising food waste. However, when not managed responsibly, packaging can become an environmental pollutant, posing risks to ecosystems and wildlife.
Product packaging must therefore strike a balance between functionality, quality and safety, while also minimising negative environmental impacts.
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As a signatory to the Australian Packaging Covenant (‘the Covenant’) and a member of the Australian Packaging Covenant Organisation (APCO), Coles remains committed to supporting industry towards the National Packaging Targets.
Expanding and investing in Australia’s recycling infrastructure is essential. Coles is committed to working collaboratively with industry partners and other stakeholders to support this growth and to explore innovative packaging solutions. Since 2019, Coles has been rated as a ‘leading’ retailer by APCO in its annual performance assessment of its members. Our most recent APCO Annual Report and Action Plan can be found
hereView PDF, Annual Report and Action Plan, file size 529KB.
Coles Own Brand R³ Packaging FrameworkCollapsed
Our R³ Packaging Framework is based on the three pillars of Redesign, Recycle and Reimagine:
- Redesign: Reducing unnecessary packaging and removing non-recyclable components where possible;
- Recycle: Helping ensure our packaging is recycled as much as possible. One of the ways we do this is through application of the ARL on our packaging; and
- Reimagine: Finding new ways to reuse materials.
The framework helps ensure a systematic approach is used across our business to drive continuous progress. This includes a dedicated sustainable packaging team to provide expertise, drive sustainable packaging outcomes through the product development process, conduct packaging reviews and ongoing engagement with our suppliers and team members.
Here
is a recent example of our R³ Packaging Framework in action.
More information on some of our key packaging achievements can be found in the
Coles Sustainability ReportSustainability Report, View PDF, file size 8MB.
Partnership with Planet Ark
Coles has partnered with leading environmental not-for-profit, Planet Ark, to help further our efforts to reduce food waste and packaging, and to tackle the challenge of plastic waste and recycling.
We are working with Planet Ark on a range of waste reduction and recycling initiatives, including during National Recycling Week and the School Recycle Right Challenge, of which Coles is the major sponsor.
Australasian Recycle Label (ARL)
Coles has added the Australasian Recycle Label (ARL) to the packaging artwork across all Own Brand products*. The ARL provides Australians with easy-to-understand recycling information that helps to remove confusion at the recycling bin, save time for users and reduce the amount of waste going to landfill.
* Customers may keep seeing some Coles Own Brand products without the ARL, as updated artwork flows through the store network.
Transport packagingCollapsed
We are working with our suppliers to reduce waste in the supply chain. Plastic crates are used across our fresh produce and meat supply chains, replacing some corrugated cardboard, waxed cardboard and expanded polystyrene boxes. As well as reducing waste, these crates help reduce product damage, which also cuts down on food waste. In FY21, Coles entered a 10-year supply chain partnership with CHEP Australia, a division of Brambles. CHEP is providing many of Coles’ fresh produce and protein suppliers with a pool of reusable crates that are washed and rotated up to 80 million times per year.
