“Almost the entire retail network in Austria” is now equipped with deposit machines, announced managing director Simon Parth at a press conference on Tuesday. The deposit for closed plastic or metal drinks containers with a capacity of up to three liters will cost 25 cents each – excluding milk and medical products. There will also be no deposit on syrup because it is not yet ready to drink. Machines should be able to take back all bottles and cans in circulation. However, for manual returns, returned containers must correspond to the volume and packaging material of the purchase – if a retailer only offers one-liter PET bottles, he does not have to accept bottles with a capacity of 0.5 liters or cans.
Information campaign in January
According to Parth, there is also “intensive communication” with producers in order to adapt the packaging designs to the guidelines in good time. However, old bottles and cans are likely to continue to be on the shelves at the beginning of the year, as recyclable containers will not be delivered until January 1, 2025, according to the regulation. “In order not to unsettle consumers too much, we will start an information campaign in January,” says Monika Fiala, also managing director of “EWP Recycling Pfand Austria”. Beverage manufacturers, importers and collectors must register on the EWP portal.
The managing director was confident that the deposit system would also guarantee compliance with EU regulations. From next year, for example, plastic bottles must be made of at least 25 percent recycled material. In 2029, EU countries must also achieve a collection target of 90 percent. “We have already anchored this 90 percent in our regulation in 2027,” said Fiala.
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2.2 billion bottles and cans per year
The processing office expects a circular economy with 2.2 billion bottles and cans annually. Of these, “two billion will be taken back via vending machines in food retailers,” says Parth. Existing delivery logistics of the companies are to bring the containers from the vending machines to retail warehouses, where they will be pressed and transported to sorting warehouses. Sorting systems are currently still under construction and interim systems have been commissioned for 2025.
