Soft plastics like bread bags and wrappers go in the red general waste bin unless your council runs a dedicated soft plastics program.
The detail#
Soft plastics jam kerbside recycling machinery, so they do not belong in the yellow bin. Watch for returning store drop-off schemes and council trials, which are the right home for them where available.
Check the rule for your council#
Councils set their own accepted-item lists. Open your council page from the home search to confirm the rule where you live, or start from your state:
- New South Wales council bin rules
- Victoria council bin rules
- Queensland council bin rules
- South Australia council bin rules
- Western Australia council bin rules
- Tasmania council bin rules
- Australian Capital Territory council bin rules
- Northern Territory council bin rules
The lid colours themselves follow Australian Standard AS 4123, so the colour code is national even where the accepted-item list is not. Where a council runs a food and garden organics service or a separate glass bin, the answer for some items changes.