South Africa’s e-commerce boom shows no signs of slowing. From groceries to gadgets, the convenience of click-and-collect and doorstep delivery has transformed how South Africans shop. Yet behind the satisfying ping of order confirmations lies a quieter, pressing question: what happens to the mountain of packaging that arrives with each parcel?

FOR many consumers, the instinctive answer is simple: paper is greener than plastic. But scratch beneath the surface and the reality is far more complex. The growth of e-commerce, particularly in a country as logistically and geographically challenging as South Africa, has exposed a packaging paradox: balancing sustainability with cost, functionality and the expectations of customers accustomed to fast, flawless delivery.

Checkers’ Sixty60, one of South Africa’s leading online grocery platforms, exemplifies this dual challenge. ‘Our packaging was designed with both functionality and environmental responsibility in mind,’ explains the Sixty60 media team. The tough but lightweight materials are 100% recyclable and FSC-certified, designed for durability on delivery routes while still being convenient for customers to reuse or recycle.

In 2021, Sixty60 became the first South African supermarket to introduce paper bag recycling with home pick-up. Customers can return used paper bags directly to drivers with their next delivery – a simple yet elegant step to ensure packaging re-enters the recycling stream. ‘We are guided by what our customers want and need,’ the team adds, ‘which includes sustainable packaging alternatives, such as paper over plastic, as well as convenience and minimal excess packaging.’

Woolworths Foods, through its Woolies Dash service, takes a similar approach but places particular emphasis on mechanical strength and product protection. ‘We apply the same lens for online packaging as we do for retail packaging,’ explains Don Mac Farlane, packaging senior at Woolworths Foods. ‘The difference is that delivery packaging must withstand more handling, so durability is key. All our packaging is recyclable, our paper bags are made from 100% post-consumer recycled paper and all paper and board is FSC-certified and sourced responsibly.’

For Woolies Dash, reducing waste is as much about removing barriers for recyclers as it is about material choice. ‘Our paper bags don’t contain heavy wet-strength additives, which can complicate recycling. And when we use plastic, we do so responsibly – always ensuring it is recyclable,’ Don adds. Cartons are carefully sized to product dimensions to minimise void fill and even filler materials are FSC-certified paper.

The plastic debate
Yet sustainability is rarely a straight line. Annabé Pretorius, executive technical operations manager at Plastics SA, cautions that popular perceptions can be misleading. ‘Because of the lighter weight of plastics, it is often the greener option,’ she notes, citing studies from the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) on carrier bags. Paper may seem environmentally preferable, but its benefits only emerge if it is reused multiple times – a nuance often overlooked in public discourse.

Customers, however, often vote with their baskets. ‘There is a clear preference for paper packaging,’ Don acknowledges. ‘It’s easy to recycle and fits seamlessly into existing waste streams, whereas plastic requires more effort to separate by type. But while customers want minimal packaging, we need to balance that with product protection and integrity. Food safety and quality can never be compromised.’

The problem, Annabé stresses, is not simply the packaging medium but the fractured state of South Africa’s waste management system. ‘The recycling industries for paper and plastics have the capacity to handle more volume. The challenge is that recyclable waste often doesn’t reach recyclers. It becomes waste, whether paper or plastic.’ Plastics are more visible in the environment, attracting the brunt of public criticism, yet a paper bag abandoned in the veld can be just as environmentally damaging.

Reuse: untapped potential of e-commerce
E-commerce platforms, however, offer a unique opportunity to rethink packaging entirely. Durable plastics lend themselves to reuse, Annabé argues. They can survive multiple delivery cycles, remain hygienic and can even be returned for the next order. ‘The CCL study we conducted with GIZ* and Gcwalisa** in Alexandra, Johannesburg, demonstrated the suitability of plastics for reuse, while also creating jobs in collection, cleaning and repair.’

Imagine a future in which your grocery bag is not discarded after a single delivery but collected, sanitised and returned for another use – a closed-loop system where packaging becomes part of a circular economy, rather than a one-way ticket to landfill. Incentives could encourage customers to return packaging or penalties could discourage discarding it, embedding responsibility into everyday transactions.

Yet even the most robust materials are useless without education and logistics to ensure they are collected. Annabé stresses that 39% of South African consumers have no access to waste management, leaving packaging to litter streets, burn in open pits or rot in landfills. ‘E-commerce is ideally positioned to close the loop,’ she says. ‘Brand owners can educate consumers on the benefits of reuse and recycling and ensure packaging is returned.’

Innovation on the ground
South African retailers are already experimenting with solutions tailored to local realities. Sixty60’s paper bag pick-up programme is just one example. Woolies Dash is also exploring new ways to strengthen sustainability without compromising function, including opting out of packaging where appropriate – giving customers more choice while reducing unnecessary material use.

‘The packaging we currently use is fit for purpose and functional,’ Don emphasises. ‘But we watch the e-commerce space closely to ensure we stay aligned with innovation from packaging suppliers. Customer feedback also guides us – our goal is to ensure that our delivery packaging remains relevant, sustainable, and rooted in practicality.’

Innovation, in other words, extends beyond materials to design, logistics and consumer engagement. Lightweight plastics, hybrid materials and reusable packaging programmes are all under consideration. Retailers must navigate long transport routes, customer expectations for pristine delivery and cost pressures while embedding sustainability into every touchpoint.

The future will likely involve an ecosystem of options: recyclable paper for some products, durable plastics for others and hybrid solutions that combine the best of both worlds. Each decision will have to be informed by life cycle analysis, real-world reuse potential and the intricacies of South Africa’s recycling infrastructure.

What emerges is a clear imperative: e-commerce is reshaping both retail and packaging and growth brings costs that must be managed with intelligent design, strategic material choices and a systemic approach to reuse and recycling.

For retailers, it’s a race to innovate sustainably while meeting customer expectations. For consumers, it’s rethinking packaging as a resource, not waste. And for policymakers, it’s a call to strengthen waste management infrastructure, so recycling is realised in practice.

South Africa’s e-commerce packaging conundrum reflects the global sustainability challenge: convenience versus responsibility, perception versus science, cost versus environmental impact. The stakes are high, but so is the potential for change. With creativity, foresight and a commitment to circular solutions, the online shopping revolution can become a laboratory for sustainable innovation.

This article courtesy of Packaging & Print Magazine