Bank in bottles
Re-turn scheme starts today
IRELAND’S “once in a generation” bottle and can return scheme launches today.
Customers who buy drinks featuring the Re-turn logo will have to pay 15/25c extra depending on their size but can reclaim that cash when they take the empty container back to participating shops.
Concerns have been raised that not all retailers selling eligible drinks will take them back – leaving customers with fewer options to reclaim deposits.
But operator Re-turn says most retailers have registered.
They also told us shops selling single-use cans and bottles will have four months to shift their excess stock in a bid to cut waste and prevent costs.
Vincent Jennings from the Convenience Stores and Newsagents Association all of their members have signed up and are ready to play their part – with around half getting reverse vending machines.
He told us: “We don’t expect there to be a tsunami of bottles coming back.
“For some it will take months, others it will be weeks but slowly but surely the producers will be supplying stuff with the logo.
“There’s a couple of landmark dates. February 1 is the first one.
“Then [in mid] March importers cannot bring stuff into the country without the logo on it and finally, at the end of May retailers cannot sell drinks without the logo on it.
“It’s an extended process.
“The unfortunate thing is that it’s a very expensive project for smaller retailers who don’t want to be left behind.
“You’ll get no change out of €30k for this... the cost of going green shouldn’t be all at one side but I wouldn’t want anybody to think retailers are not positive about it. We are.
“The one thing I would say is be kind to staff.”
Around five million drinks are consumed in single-use containers in Ireland every day.
The deposit return scheme is designed to improve the national recycling rate of plastic bottles and aluminium cans and prevent them going to landfill or for incineration.
Minister of State with responsibility for Communications and the Circular Economy, Ossian Smyth, said: “The Deposit Return Scheme is a once-in-a-generation development.
“This exciting, new initiative which will boost recycling rates, greatly reduce litter and improve the environment.
“It will get bottles and cans off our roadsides and beaches and contribute to the circular economy by turning waste drinks containers into new bottles and cans.
“I think people in Ireland will really get behind this scheme and make it a great success. I want to acknowledge the collaboration and the leadership industry has shown in establishing a complex new system in a relatively short time frame.
“I would also like to recognise the smaller businesses who have opted into the scheme.”
Musgrave says it will have 667 reverse vending machines in 219 Supervalu and 321 Centra stores nationwide as the scheme launches after its trial last year found “customers like how they can contribute positively to the environment”. A spokesperson added: “The scale and geographical spread ensures customers in large and small communities can more easily make their returns nearby.
“The total investment by Supervalu and Centra in RVMS stands at €28m.
“Supervalu and Centra estimate 90% of recyclable PET bottles and AUL cans sold in store will be returned and more than 320 million containers are projected to be collected annually with the rollout of RVMS across the store network.”