The Australian Packaging Covenant Organisation (APCO), a not-for-profit that charges its business members annual fees, runs the scheme. Government sets the rules and industry runs it (co-regulation). Brand owners report on packaging sustainability under the Recycling and Waste Reduction Act 2020 and a national environmental rule on used packaging, the National Environment Protection (Used Packaging Materials) Measure (NEPM). APCO also hosts the ANZPAC Plastics Pact, launched in May 2021 as part of the Ellen MacArthur Foundation network, with more than 100 members across Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific.
ANZPAC targets for 2025: 100 percent of plastic packaging reusable, recyclable or compostable, a 25 percent increase in collection and recycling, and 25 percent average recycled content in plastic packaging. The federal government released updated packaging reform guidance in February 2026 but has not legislated mandatory design standards or extended producer responsibility (EPR); a Greens private senator's bill, the Extended Producer Responsibility Scheme for Packaging (No Time to Waste) Bill 2026, was introduced in the Senate on 13 May 2026 by Peter Whish-Wilson, referred to the Environment and Communications Legislation Committee on 14 May 2026 and debated at second reading on 13 August 2026 without passing.
Status as at September 2026: voluntary targets only, so there is no commencement date; national packaging reform regulation under development and not legislated. Dates verified against APCO's ANZPAC Plastics Pact page and the Senate record for the No Time to Waste Bill 2026 on 23 September 2026.