The Danish Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) is a planetary excellence in beverage packaging recovery and recycling. So efficient that it has enabled Extended Producers ‘ Responsibility (EPR) charges to be eliminated as of 2023.
Deposit Return Scheme, the Danish model
The management of beverage bottles and cans in Denmark is entrusted exclusively-and strictly-to the DepositReturn Scheme, the introduction of which in France is now the subject of lively debate. (1)
Under the classic scheme, the consumer pays a surcharge on drinks, in this case up to 3 Danish kroner (DKK), 40 cents. The amount can be recovered by placing the packaging in an automated collector, which issues a ticket to be cashed in or credits the amount to an app.
The system is fully managed by Dansk Retursystem, a company with majority shares held by giant Carlsberg and two other Danish breweries (Thisted Brewery and Royal Unibrew). The service has been operated on a nonprofit basis for 20 years on behalf of the Ministry of the Environment, which evaluates every three years whether to renew it.
Strict standards
The terms of service are dictated by an ordinance implementing the Environmental Protection Act. (2) The text clarifies the terms of the deposit to which all beverage and packaging producers are required to comply, the obligation to accept empty bottles and cans from consumers, and the terms of Dansk Returnsystem’s service, such as the obligation to ensure that 90 percent of collected empty single-use packaging is recycled.
All single-use beverage packaging intended for marketing in Denmark is subject to registration with Dansk Returnsystem. The procedure is completed by providing labels to be affixed to the packaging to indicate the type of deposit, which varies according to the material. The rule also applies to importers, who are required to comply at least 4 weeks before importation.
Advance deposit
Upon initial registration, the operator is required to post a security deposit to guarantee payment of deposits and fees. The advance is repaid within two years.
The deposit amount can be up to DKK 500,000 (EUR 67,000), reduced to DKK 100,000 (EUR 13,400) for operators who exclusively or predominantly market beverages in disposable glass packaging.
Collection points
Collection is organized both in public areas and in commercial establishments that decide to offer this service under the following conditions:
- registration with Dansk Retursystem, upon payment of a modest annual fee (DKK 500, or 67 euros).
- Reimbursement of expenses incurred,
- Liability for any impediments to collection, (e.g. inadequate packing of collected materials, failure to clear snow, etc.) with steep penalties. Dansk Retursystem in such cases charges the shopkeeper for all charges related to the missed pickup (fuel, personnel, equipment, and any other cost items for the empty round trip).
Clean streets
Dansk Retursystem in turn pays the Danish Environmental Protection Agency an amount each year (in 2023 set at DKK 100,000, or EUR 13,423) that is used to cover the costs of collecting, transporting, sorting, and treating waste from single-use plastic packaging dispersed in the environment or delivered by citizens to municipal collection centers.
The detailed description of the tasks and burdens faced by each actor involved in collecting packaging for recycling leaves no room for uncertainty, generating efficiency.
A profitable system
The fluidity of the Danish Deposit Return Scheme-in supermarkets and in dedicated areas where new machines receive up to 120 bottles per minute-has yielded increasing collection rates, up to the current 93 percent of the released for consumption. Of 100 bottles or cans sold, 93 are returned and can be recycled.
The excellent quality of the material collected through the deposit system translates into good revenue through sales to recyclers. So good that this year it has allowed the burden on producers under Extended Producers‘ Responsibility ( EPR) to be reduced to zero, as announced by Lars Krejberg Petersen, CEO of Dansk Retursystem. (3)
Containers intended for reuse
Containers intended for glass and plastic reuse are also subject to the deposit system, but are not directly managed by Dansk Returnsystem.
Producers must independently ensure that the deposit is refunded to the consumer and returned washed and refilled. Alternatively, they can outsource to Dansk Returnsystem, which offers a turnkey service: registration, labeling, depot management, pickup and sanitization or disposal of containers for reuse.
Golden share
In 20 years of operation, Dansk Retursystem has developed an impressive and constantly improving business. The company reports the adoption of the first two Mercedes-Benz electric trucks to transport materials, the start of recycling treatment also for green plastic bottles, which have been excluded until now. And it promises to continue on its path, aiming for the goal of becoming a 100 percent circular system and zero carbon emissions in 2030.
To protect so much value, and a service now crucial to Denmark’s circular economy goals, the Ministry of the Environment has reserved for itself the right of first refusal on Dansk Retursystem’s shares and tangible assets.
Marta Strinati
Notes
(1) Marta Strinati. Security deposit on plastic bottles. The debate in France. FT (Food Times). 9.2.23
(2) BEK nr 1568 af 19/12/2022 effective 5.1.23 https://www.retsinformation.dk/eli/lta/2022/1568
(3) Nu er det gratis at pante. Press release from Dansk Retursystem. 24.1.23 https://danskretursystem.dk/presse/nul-gebyr/
Professional journalist since January 1995, he has worked for newspapers (Il Messaggero, Paese Sera, La Stampa) and periodicals (NumeroUno, Il Salvagente). She is the author of journalistic surveys on food, she has published the book "Reading labels to know what we eat".
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