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By the PAKPRO Comms Team
Kenya’s ambition for 100% recyclable packaging is bold and necessary. But ambition alone does not deliver results. What truly drives progress is aligning industry responsibility with practical, scalable systems on the ground. This is where PAKPRO stands, as the bridge between policy commitments and real-world impact.
Across Kenya’s packaging value chain, producers are increasingly stepping up to take responsibility for the materials they place on the market. Through Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR), businesses are not only committing to sustainability goals but actively investing in collection, recovery, and recycling systems.
However execution is everything
Reaching 100% recyclability may seem like an advanced goal, but it is achievable. It is not just about designing better packaging, it is about ensuring that every piece of packaging can move through an efficient, inclusive recovery system. That requires strong collaboration across the value chain, investment in recycling infrastructure, inclusion of informal waste collectors, and data-driven accountability. PAKPRO is enabling this ecosystem, translating industry responsibility into measurable outcomes.
Lessons from South Africa: What Works
Recent engagements and learning exchanges proudly sponsored by Tetra Pak, with PETCO, a leading Producer Responsibility Organisation in South Africa, have reinforced a simple but powerful truth: effective EPR systems are built on coordination, compliance, and trust. With a total of 82 PROs in South Africa representative of the population and waste demands. South Africa’s progress demonstrates offers a glimpse of what that looks like in practice. Their progress shows that clear regulatory frameworks give industry the certainty to participate, well-structured PROs bring efficiency and accountability, integrating informal waste collectors meaningfully lifts collection rates, and transparent reporting builds the credibility that keeps a system trustworthy. Perhaps the most important lesson is this: success does not come from isolated efforts, but from a unified system in which every actor understands their role and plays it well.
Perhaps most importantly, their model shows that success lies not in isolated efforts but in a unified system where every actor understands their role and delivers it. This came into sharp focus as PAKPRO engaged with pioneering South African recyclers, converters, and manufacturers driving innovation in the circular economy using 100% recycled plastic and PolyAl material to manufacture patio sets, picnic tables, playground equipment, and custom-made products.
Kenya is not starting from scratch. We have a vibrant recycling sector, Strong policy direction under EPR regulations and increasing private sector commitment. What we need now is scale, coordination, and consistency. PAKPRO is playing a central role in supporting producers meet their EPR business obligations efficiently while collectively pushing for waste collection systems to be strengthened and expanded to ensure recyclers are supported with consistent material flows. Finally, using technology for data and reporting framework guide to progress toward national targets.
Moving Forward Together
Reaching 100% recyclable packaging by 2030 is not just about possibility, it is about systems that work. PAKPRO connects policy and implementation, producers and recyclers, formal and informal sectors, turning commitments into measurable outcomes. By doing so, we are not only advancing compliance, but also building a circular economy that delivers environmental, social, and economic value. The insights from South Africa reaffirm that with the right structures, partnerships, and accountability mechanisms, transformation is achievable. At PAKPRO, we are committed to ensuring that industry responsibility translates into real impact closing the loop on packaging and shaping a more sustainable future for Kenya.
For more information and to arrange interviews, please contact: corporatecomms@pakpro.co.ke