“Legal Notice 277 of 2006 requires that by the end of this year, each company must recover at least 50 per cent of packaging placed on the market as a result of their trade,” GreenPak CEO Mario Schembri informed a recent and well-attended information meeting organised by the Malta Chamber of Commerce and Enterprise.
Highlighting how GreenPak has been successful in recovering and recycling waste materials above the national packaging recycling targets for the last three consecutive years, Mr Schembri attributed the state of play to GreenPak’s know-how, gained through its high standing with PRO Europe – the largest waste recovery and recycling corporate body within the EU, recycling millions of tonnes of packaging waste annually.
“Malta has the advantage of being a late starter in the area of recycling. As a result, we can avoid the pitfalls that other countries have experienced. There’s a wealth of tried and tested systems out there and it is a simple matter of choosing the most appropriate systems for Malta. GreenPak has avoided re-inventing the wheel and has steered away from costly experiments in waste recovery. As a result, GreenPak has been able to provide legal compliance at the least possible cost for its numerous members and is today the most economical packaging recovery scheme in Malta. This can be easily attested by comparing the packaging waste recovery rates charged by authorised schemes in Malta.”
Commenting on the fact that GreenPak’s main competitor has revised the fees it charges any prospective members, Mr Schembri said: “The new prices of our competitor are higher than those of GreenPak. In the case of plastic waste, for example, the cost is more than double that charged by GreenPak. In this time of economic hardship, and the uncertainties faced by business, any savings that can be made are welcomed by any business. GreenPak delivers just that.”
The information meeting was also addressed by Mepa director Martin Seychell, who explained: “Companies are free to choose whether to join an authorised scheme or whether to comply with the legal requirements by setting up their own systems of recovery. Either way, companies need to inform Mepa what has been recovered, together with supporting evidence. In the case of a company that is a member of a scheme, it is enough for Mepa to provide a certificate as provided by the authorised scheme.”