Australia Packaging Covenant Organisation

The Australian Packaging Covenant Organisation (APCO) is a not-for-profit organisation leading the development of a circular economy for packaging in Australia.

Our vision: Sustainable Packaging Across the Value Chain

At APCO, we envision a collaborative packaging value chain to keep packaging materials out of landfill and retain the maximum value of the materials, energy and labour within the local economy.

Australian Packaging Covenant: APCO's Co-Regulatory Role in Empowering Change

APCO is the entity in charge of managing and administering the Australian Packaging Covenant (the Covenant), which is a national regulatory framework under the National Environment Protection (Used Packaging Materials) Measure 2011 (NEPM). This framework defines the collective responsibility shared by governments and businesses across Australia in managing the environmental impact of packaging. This pivotal role bridges industry participants along the packaging supply chain with Commonwealth, state, and territory governments, endorsed by environment ministers.

The Australian Packaging Covenant (the Covenant) is a national regulatory framework under the National Environment Protection (Used Packaging Materials) Measure 2011 (NEPM) that sets out how governments and businesses across Australia share the responsibility for managing the environmental impacts of packaging.

The Covenant supports an industry-led component of a co-regulatory arrangement underpinned by the NEPM.

The Covenant embodies product stewardship and shared responsibility approaches that focus on seven principles:

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