Thank you in advance for your ongoing support of AORA.

We have recently sent membership renewal notifications and invoices and we hope that you will continue to support and be part of our Association. We have made some changes this year to our membership structure and fees. This is in part reflective of a membership review undertaken by the Association earlier in 2022 and in response to one of the strategic directives of the Association - “AORA is a successful and sustainable business with outstanding delivery of member needs.”

 

For almost every Association, there is a symbiotic relationship with members and sponsors. The Association is reliant on members and sponsors for financial support, as it is often the case, as it is for AORA, they are the primary sources on income. In return, members and sponsors have an expectation of support, service, information, advocacy, etc. from their Association i.e., for the Association to take on a role that as individual members/sponsors, they would not necessarily be able to perform as efficiently or effectively.

 

The need for a strong and effective AORA has never been more pronounced, of that, I am sure.

When I look across our industry and note the industry-wide issues/concerns, the need for a peak industry body is paramount. I only have to scratch the surface to see some of the challenges that will require a strong and effective voice – PFAS and other forever chemicals, the rollout of FOGO, climate change mitigation, the Australian National Waste Policy, etc. etc. It is the role of AORA to take an industry leadership position on these issues on behalf of our members and sponsors and help determine and deliver, wherever possible, a positive outcome/impact on our Australian organics recycling industry. To do that, we need your support. Thank you.

John McKew

National Executive Officer

Australian Organics Recycling Association

After a forced hiatus, mainly due to COVID, AORA hit the restart button on the International Compost Alliance (ICA) on Wednesday 27 July with a virtual meeting of participants from Ireland, UK, USA, Germany and Canada.

Whilst it was not the full contingent of members who were able to join the meeting, it was a very good attendance (despite the many different time zones) and a valuable chance to hear an update on the issues from around the world impacting (or threatening to impact) our fellow organic recycling industries.

Each participant in the meeting provided a five-minute update on their industry, including Australia, and what was clearly evident after these updates was the number of issues that are common across all of us. This included (and of no surprise), contamination including PFAS and microplastics, regulation, environmental issues, food waste, fertilizer costs, soil health, etc.

The ICA will continue to meet regularly with the purpose to share, communicate and potentially collaborate on the issues of mutual interest/concern. The level of goodwill from all participants to the ICA will ensure there is value for all.

Sponsorship Benefits include;

The workshops are designed to help end users understand the benefits and effective use of compost and mulches produced from recycled organic inputs. This will help the Organics Recycling Industry better understand and respond to the needs of the current and emerging agriculturalists.

Boyd Russell (Director, Sphere Infrastructure Partners) & Charlie Emery (Managing Director, Soilco & NSW Chair, AORA)

The Lakes Golf Club, Sydney

AORA AGM and Annual Members Forum + NSW Xmas Drinks

Adelaide Zoo

AORA SA Christmas Event

AORA Partner News

Australian food packaging manufacturer Confoil and BASF have cooperated to develop a certified compostable and dual ovenable food tray based on paper. The paper tray is coated on the inside with BASF’s ecovio^® PS 1606, a partly bio-based and certified compostable biopolymer especially developed for coating food packaging made of paper or board.

The trays called DualPakECO^® are certified according to the Australian standard AS4736-2006 and food contact approved according to international requirements. They can be used for ready-to-eat meals like lasagne, curries and stir-fries available as cold or frozen in supermarkets as well as for catering and take-away from restaurants.

The DualPakECO^® trays were introduced to the market at the AORA Annual Conference 2022 in June. AORA Chair, Peter Wadewitz, said: “The Australian standards are the most stringent ones for compostable plastics in the world. Commercial composting is an integral part of a circular economy where organic waste can be turned into a valuable resource rather than be disposed of in landfill or incinerated. Compost from organic recycling can be used in agriculture to improve degraded soils and return organic matter to soils ensuring future productivity.”

NSW EPA has recently released their position statement formalising their existing position on inputs to FO and FOGO waste streams, consistent with the Resource Recovery Order and Exemption for compost.

Tamworth Regional Council’s industrial class organics (ICO) facility is the first of its kind in Australia. Morné Hattingh, Manager Waste and Resource Recovery, and AORA Director, shares the council’s journey in the latest Waste Management Review.

The National Soil Strategy is a 20-year strategy that sets out how Australia will value, manage and improve its soil. The Strategy has been developed in collaboration with state and territory governments, the National Soils Advocate and other major stakeholders in soil science and land management.

The Australasian Bioplastics Association (ABA), in partnership with the Australian Institute of Packaging (AIP), have announced the winners of the annual ABA Scholarship program for Australia and New Zealand.

If you have a story, link or news to share with AORA members, please email Alex