150 Million Blister Packs Recycled and Counting

Pharmacycle has now collected and recycled more than 150 million blister packs since launching in 2022, alongside growth to more than 1,000 active drop-off locations across Australia.

Australians use hundreds of millions of blister packs every year. Because they are made from a combination of plastic and aluminium they cannot be processed through standard kerbside recycling. Most end up in landfills, and many that do make it into recycling bins contaminate other material streams. Pharmacycle was built to solve that problem.

Getting to 150 million took a collective effort. The milestone reflects the participation of pharmacies, hospitals, councils, workplaces, schools, community organisations and everyday Australians who chose to return their packs rather than bin them.

"For many years, people simply didn't know there was a way to recycle blister packs. What's been incredible is seeing Australians actively embrace the program once they realise there's a practical solution available." - Jason Rijnbeek, Head of Strategy

What comes next

Reaching 150 million is a significant marker, but awareness of blister pack recycling still has a long way to go. Many Australians don't know the option exists, and many more don't realise blister packs can't go in household recycling bins at all. Growing that awareness remains the clearest path to the next milestone.

The regulatory environment is also shifting toward greater producer responsibility for packaging end-of-life. That creates a clearer path for the program to grow and for more producers to come on board as partners.

"Every blister pack returned represents somebody making a conscious choice to keep valuable materials out of landfill. Reaching 150 million shows how powerful community participation can be." - Ursi Kernan, Program Lead

150 million is a number worth celebrating. It also represents what becomes possible when a practical solution is put in front of people who want to do the right thing. Every pack returned from here adds to that.