Austria starts disposable deposit: supermarkets ready for the big rush!

Austria starts disposable deposit: supermarkets ready for the big rush!

Pressbaum, Österreich - Austria faces an exciting change in the area of disposable packaging! From January 1, 2025, a new disposable deposit system for cans and plastic bottles will come into force, for which the food dealers have already made extensive investments of around 300 million euros in return machines and the required infrastructure. When APA is called among the supermarket chains, it became known that large companies such as Spar, Rewe, Hofer and Lidl pave the way for this system together. Small retailers receive up to 100 percent of the costs, larger companies benefit from 20 to 40 percent.

But how will this system work in practice? From January, a deposit of 25 cents will be due for one-way beverage packaging between 0.1 and three liters. Consumers can return their empty bottles and doses as long as they are unexpected and with a readable label and receive their deposit back. Products such as tetrapaks and milk are an exception that are not occupied by a deposit. This innovation promises a significant increase in the return station, which is to be increased to at least 90 percent by the end of 2027 - an ambitious goal in view of the current return values of only 5.7 percent, as reported by noe.orf.at.

investments in the future

SPAR is investing 60 million euros in the new infrastructure alone. According to Rewe, they have raised an “medium double -digit million amount” to implement the adjustments, while Hofer thinks of his customers and installed additional machines to avoid long waiting times. Lidl also plans to enable the handover of deposit bons to various donation organizations. A major challenge for the industry is the changeover, especially for the more than 6,700 independent merchants in the country, who often have limited space for return machines.

The withdrawal agreements with to -grapples and sausage stands, as offered by REWE, are intended to increase user friendliness, since customers can hand over their deposit packaging in any supermarket, regardless of where they have acquired them. However, the big question remains: is the new system also accepted by consumers? In view of the fact that the supermarkets are well prepared and the initial response is positive, it could be crucial for the success of the deposit system that customers can actively participate. As already expected, the number of pledge packaging in retail will increase significantly in the coming year, which means a first stress test for the new system, which is still under construction.

Overall, the implementation of the disposable deposit system for Austria represents a significant step in the direction of a more sustainable handling of plastic packaging, which will only have its full effect in the coming year.