"The extension of the mandatory deposit to juice and nectar is a long overdue step on the way to closed loops and more sustainable packaging solutions," says Kay Fischer, Managing Director of Eckes-Granini Deutschland GmbH. "As a company, we are actively committed to sustainability and have also made a strong case for the juice deposit."
With deposit information on the bottle labels as well as display and shelf wobblers that link to further online information via QR code, Eckes-Granini is informing its consumers about the sustainable news and the gradual integration of its PET juice containers into the well-known deposit system. From July 3, 2021, to June 30, 2022, a "transitional period" applies that allows products with and without a deposit to coexist. The familiar DPG symbol on the label helps to keep track.
Strengthening the recycling loop
Around 45,000 tons of PET are currently lost to the deposit system. This corresponds to just under ten percent of all PET bottles in circulation. These PET bottles, which have not yet had a deposit, are currently disposed of via the dual system and, due to contamination and mixing, are largely only recycled downstream. Deposited PET bottles, on the other hand, are collected cleanly via the return vending machine and can thus be fed back into the recycling cycle for food packaging, among other things.
By the end of 2022, Eckes-Granini Germany intends to use only PET bottles made of 100 % recycled PET for its brands - thus saving around 9,000 tons of new plastic per year. The bottles of the anchor brand hohes C are already made of 100 % recycled plastic as of this year. The declared aim is to achieve a closed loop "from bottle to bottle". The company is currently working intensively with industry partners to achieve this further milestone in improving the circular economy.
