Hundreds of volunteer mystery shoppers have revealed that buying plastic-free fresh produce often comes at a higher cost, with loose items more expensive than their pre-packaged equivalents in 73% of cases.

The findings, published today in the third annual Unwrapped Audit, also highlight the inconsistent and limited options for Australians buying groceries online, factors that could unintentionally increase plastic use.

The audit, conducted by the Australian Marine Conservation Society (AMCS) and the Boomerang Alliance (BA), also found that Australia’s largest supermarkets are failing to address the nation’s growing plastic pollution crisis. Around 140,000 tonnes of plastic enter the Australian environment every year, with packaging accounting for 58% of litter collected.

Big supermarkets failing on plastic reduction

The audit assessed Australia’s four major supermarket groups: Woolworths, Coles, ALDI, and Metcash (IGA, Foodland, Friendly Grocer, and Eziway), across five areas: transparency, plastic reduction, reuse, recycling, and policy, planning, and governance.

• Woolworths scored 38%

• Metcash 26%

• Coles 19%

• ALDI 14%

While Woolworths and Metcash have made notable improvements since 2023 (from 10% and 3% respectively), Coles has declined year-on-year, and ALDI dropped from the top spot in 2023 to last place.

“Supermarkets are sweeping the plastic pollution crisis under the shelf,” said AMCS Program Manager Tara Jones. “Despite selecting loose produce online, shoppers often received groceries overwrapped in plastic. We even saw single garlic bulbs packed in their own plastic bags. If online orders are contributing to more single-use plastic, urgent action is needed.”

Plastic-free produce comes at a premium

The audit involved hundreds of volunteer shoppers collecting price data, revealing that loose fresh produce is often more expensive than packaged alternatives. For example, loose oranges averaged $4.24 per kilogram, compared with $2.49 per kilogram pre-packaged.

“Australians trying to make sustainable choices are being penalised,” Jones said. “People should be able to trust that ‘loose produce’ actually means plastic-free, both in-store and online. Supermarkets must provide more plastic-free options and publicly report the amount of packaging used across supply chains.”

Urgent action needed

Boomerang Alliance Director Jeff Angel warned that the plastic crisis has serious environmental and health consequences. “Packaging now makes up 58% of litter collected by Clean Up Australia volunteers, much of it from supermarket shelves. Without strong action, plastic production, which is projected to triple by 2060, will send pollution spiralling out of control.”

We are calling on both supermarkets and government to implement mandatory reuse targets and an extended producer responsibility scheme, making retailers and brands financially accountable for the waste they generate.

The Unwrapped Audit 2025 was launched at a press conference this morning outside the Coles Group AGM in Melbourne.

For more information or media enquiries, contact: [email protected]

With all States and Territories have introduced a Container Refund Scheme, it's time for the longer established schemes to improve their performance. The new schemes such as Tasmania can follow in due course.

The goal of the container refund schemes is to reduce litter and waste and increase recycling of eligible beverage containers. As we speak, on average across all established schemes, the return rate is (65%) with South Australia a little higher but now reducing at (74%). That means that about one third of containers used are still being littered or landfilled.

In the best container refund schemes in Europe the return rate is well over 90%, a rate we should be able to achieve in Australia.

To achieve this return rate and to improve the schemes around the country, the Boomerang Alliance is calling for;

• An increase to the container refund to 20 cents, to provide more incentives to return containers
• Make the return of containers more convenient by including collection points at shopping centres and retail precincts
• Increase the containers collected by the scheme to include wine and spirit bottles (already included in QLD), other glass containers, other plastic containers such as milk cartons and large juice and require all bottle tops to be tethered to their bottles
• Include reusable drink containers as eligible for collection under the scheme

For more information on our 20 cent campaign and CRS improvements

The Boomerang Alliance has signed on to the joint environmental groups call for an ambitious Global Plastics Treaty. The joint statement released today (18 July 2025), supports the agreed high ambition goals the Albanese Government has committed to. Those goals include restraining the production of problematic plastics and managing a shift to a circular economy for plastics.

'The key for an effective global treaty is to ensure that any plastics placed into the market will be reused, remanufactured or recycled, without waste and without polluting our lands or oceans.' said

'In this task the Albanese Government needs to think globally and act locally. Acting means addressing Australia's woeful plastic packaging record. The vast majority of plastic packaging sold in this country is single-use and is still ending up in landfill or littered in the ocean.'

'Industry, environment groups and the concerned public have all called on the Government to reform packaging laws. That call supports a mandatory stewardship scheme for packaging to make producers fully responsible for the product they place into the Australian market.'

'Australia can take the lead in the Asia-Pacific region by demonstrating that all our packaging will be managed sustainably, with any products used recovered in practice. This is the only way that the plastic pollution crisis will be solved in our region.'

'Supporting a global plastic treaty is one thing, acting effectively to solve the problem is another.'

The Boomerang Alliance believes in Australia’s potential to lead the world in sustainability. Right now, we’re at a critical crossroads: single-use plastics are flooding our environment, contributing to climate change, and increasing cost-of-living pressures. It’s time for a bold, national shift to reusable packaging by 2030.

That’s why we’re launching our ‘Reuse Australia Program’ with the ‘Year of Reuse’ to supercharge the transition away from single-use plastics. And we need your support to make it happen.

Our vision is simple: an Australia where single-use is not only undesirable but entirely unacceptable. Our Plastic Free Places Program has proved that it’s possible.  Together, we can build a future where reusables are the norm, waste is reduced, and resources are kept in circulation.

For more information click here. 

The Boomerang Alliance is making 2025 the year of Reuse. Reusable cups, containers and other items have significant benefits compared to single-use items.  They can reduce GHG emissions, water and material use and eliminate unnecessary waste. The switch to reuse will require a big change to our habits so we are starting with cups and containers, primarily used away from home. Away-from-home use usually means that single-use products are thrown away and end up in landfills or are littered.

What we will be campaigning for:

• A binding 30% reuse target for packaging
• A Reuse Strategy included in every government’s plastic reduction policy
• National regulations to require all stadiums and major events to provide reusable cups and containers to patrons
• All cafes and food outlets to also offer reusable cups for takeaway purposes and never provide disposables for dine-in
• All retailers to only provide reusable shopping bags, that have met a reuse standard
• Supermarkets to scale up reuse items in-store and returnable containers for deliveries
• The inclusion of reusable bottles as eligible under State container refund schemes

You can check out our Choosing to Reuse in Australia report (here)

Reform of packaging after so many years of failure by government and business is an urgent task and the Boomerang Alliance is fully focused on an outcome that delivers a circular economy via avoidance, reduction, recycling and reuse supported by regulated product stewardship.[1]

Ministerial meetings have so far been unable to provide this essential, macro solution to the waste, litter and plastic pollution caused by the packaging sector, retailers and consumer behaviour.  Three settings in the policy landscape have retarded progress:

• Commonwealth ministerial procrastination despite repeated statements supporting reform and acknowledging that national action would be most effective and efficient, with the likely failure to meet the 2025 deadline
• A lack of commitment by the federal environment department to significant change, leading only to small steps that defer major regulatory change and plans
• An ongoing interest by the Commonwealth and some states in perpetuating the Australian Packaging Covenant (APCO) which has failed to meet targets and is underlain by weak compliance measures

The Boomerang Alliance is determined to overcome these barriers so that Australians and their environment can experience the required protection from pollution and avoid the costs of disposing waste.  Making producers responsible for the costs of packaging they place on the market is the most effective means to solve packaging problems, and it will relieve cost of living pressures on households who currently have to pay for single use packaging collection, recovery and litter reductions through their council rates.

Without more decisive national action, more progressive states should take unilateral action. This would be an appropriate response given our recent YouGOV poll that showed (and consistently across all jurisdictions):

• 85% of Australians expressed concern about plastic waste pollution in Australia.
• 73% of Australians want new packaging laws that shift the costs of collecting and recycling packaging waste from taxpayers to producers
• The fast tracking of soft plastic collections is a top priority for Australians, with 88% supporting the reinstatement of soft plastic collections, funded by packaging producers.[2]

Small steps at recent Environment Ministers Meeting (10/12/24)[3]

National Circular Economy Framework

The Boomerang Alliance welcomes broad support for a national circular economy framework to transition the packaging industry to a more sustainable and less wasteful future. However, it remains an advisory document only and it should now be regulated at federal and state levels to ensure a consistent and clear national approach.

Strengthening the National Waste Plan Action Plan

A recurring commitment.  We ask - what are the detailed implementation plans and how will the targets be achieved?

Packaging Design Guidance[4]

On the face of it, a welcomed initiative, but packaging design guidance is just more greenwash, unless it is more than ‘guidance’ and includes requirements that all packaging will be recovered in practice. Over 84% of packaging is designed to be recyclable now, but less than 20% of plastic packaging is actually recycled. This is due to inadequate collection and recovery infrastructure, not just poor design standards.

Harmonise Kerbside Collections ‘in principle’

Harmonising kerbside collection was agreed some years ago but has failed to materialise. The roadmap could be a positive step but there is no indication as to how the barriers will be overcome.

National roadmap: Harmonising action on problematic plastics

All States and Territories have phase out policies for problematic and unnecessary plastics, and the commitment to reduce variations on 24 items[5], without reversing any measures that have been taken, is welcome.  We note the Commonwealth is absent from this process, despite having made commitments on some key items in 2021.[6]

Expanding eligible containers in Container Refund Schemes

The ministerial meeting did not resolve this issue and it has now been left to key states to collaborate on the first tranche for wine and spirits in glass bottles.  We encourage NSW, SA, NT, Vic, WA and ACT to act (Qld has already included these containers).

The future of APCO

As noted above, its continued existence is a barrier to major reform. We note the recent ministerial meeting did not endorse APCO’s 2030 Strategic Plan[7] with its downgraded targets and delayed timeframes.  Any future replacement arrangement for product stewardship must have strict accountability to the Commonwealth and state ministers and the community.

[1] https://www.boomerangalliance.org.au/national_packaging_solution

[2] Total sample size was 1783 Australians voters (18+). Fieldwork was undertaken between 21 Nov - 04 Dec.

[3] The Queensland Government refused to endorse any of these

[4] See Design for Kerbside Recyclability Grading Framework: https://www.dcceew.gov.au/environment/protection/waste/packaging/reforming-packaging-regulation

[5] Items yet to be clarified.

[6] https://www.agriculture.gov.au/sites/default/files/documents/national-plastics-plan-2021.pdf

[7] https://documents.packagingcovenant.org.au/public-documents/2030%20Strategic%20Plan