Introduction of the Deposit Return Scheme in the Republic of Ireland
From February 1st 2024, Ireland will introduce a Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) for plastic bottles and aluminium cans. The Irish Government has appointed Re-turn to operate the new scheme, which is a key element of Ireland’s Climate Action Plan.
When you buy a drink in a plastic bottle or can that feature the Re-turn logo, you pay a small deposit in addition to the price of the drink. When you return your empty, undamaged container to a Re-turn participating retailer, you get your deposit back in full. DRS is a crucial step in the journey to a circular economy, where bottles and cans can be returned, recycled and become a new product again.
Based on the experience of other countries, we are confident that the DRS will achieve high recovery rates, helping to reduce waste and carbon emissions. Across the month of February, the Coca‑Cola System will transition its packaging to ensure its portfolio complies with the new system. The Re-turn logo, ‘Return Me’ message and deposit level will feature on labels to encourage consumers to Return, Refund and Recycle their plastic bottles and cans.
In addition, in line with the EU Single Use Plastics Directive, new, attached caps will be added to its plastic bottles, making it easier to recycle the entire package and ensure no cap gets left behind.
Agnese Filippi, Country Manager, Coca‑Cola Ireland, explains: “The introduction of a Deposit Return Scheme is an important industry milestone in the development of a circular economy for plastic bottles and cans and helping Ireland to reach its 2030 recycling targets.
“In recent months, our teams across The Coca‑Cola System have been working hard to ensure that we fully comply with the new scheme. That has required significant change for our business. Through the new mandatory logo, as well as our new label design and on-pack communication, we hope to make it as easy as possible to remind consumers about taking the steps to get their deposit back.
“As we look ahead, we’ll continue to work in collaboration with Re-turn as it implements the new scheme and encourages a shift from a ‘take-make-dispose’ culture to one of returning plastic bottles and cans.”
Davide Franzetti, General Manager, Coca‑Cola HBC Ireland and Northern Ireland, said: “The Deposit Return Scheme is a huge opportunity for the Republic of Ireland and for our industry. Similar schemes have achieved incredible results across Europe of over 90% collection rates. Today it is Ireland’s chance to take this crucial step to transition to a circular economy for plastic bottles and cans.
“As the bottling partner for The Coca‑Cola Company, together we have invested significantly in recent years in developing sustainable packaging solutions and in our operations, packaging and communications in preparation for DRS. We are constantly evolving our packaging to make it more sustainable, including transitioning to 100% recycled plastic in 2023, lightweighting our bottles and utilising KeelClip™, a minimalist paperboard packaging solution on all can multi-packs of up to eight cans..”
To find out more about the Deposit Return Scheme and how the new system will operate, visit: www.re-turn.ie