World Recycling Day: Innovative steps for collection and recycling

Closure stays on: Coca-Cola implements commitment

17-Mar-2022 - Austria

On March 18, the focus worldwide is on one message: we must take care of our resources and keep secondary raw materials such as PET in the recycling loop and reuse them. To this end, Coca-Cola Austria is now relying on new caps that are inseparable from the PET bottle. On the occasion of World recycling Day, the beverage producer is calling on people to collect as many beverage bottles and cans as possible via the successful RecycleMich app in the coming weeks. On the way to the adopted deposit system for single-use beverage containers, the Coca-Cola system supports trade, industry and the ministry for a good start in 2025.

World Recycling Day was launched in 2018 to recognize the importance of recycling in conserving our precious primary resources and securing the future of our planet. The focus of public discussion is usually on how to deal with plastic packaging. "Coca-Cola is always committed to dialogue and education on this issue, and we engage with sustainable goals and initiatives to be part of the solution. This is an essential element of our business model," emphasizes Fabio Cella, Country Manager at Coca-Cola Austria.

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At Coca-Cola, the PET bottle and its cap will be inseparable in the future: this is made possible by firmly connected screw caps. Following an initial test phase, Coca-Cola products in PET bottles with these screw caps will be rolled out across the whole of Austria in the coming months - two years ahead of the legal obligation. This is another important step for Coca-Cola in realizing its global vision of a world without waste. "The new caps support collection rates. It also brings a change of mindset. Ultimately, the quality and drinking experience remain the same, and it already helps the environment," reasons Fabio Cella. Climate Protection Minister Leonore Gewessler also welcomes this commitment: "The European rules stipulate that from 2024 caps will be directly linked to beverage bottles. This will ensure that the caps do not end up as plastic waste in our natural environment. It's clear that the sooner we implement this, the better. After all, every cap that doesn't end up in nature is a gain for the protection of our environment. I am pleased that Coca-Cola is taking responsibility here and is already implementing the new regulations this year - earlier than required by law."

With the new closures, it has also been possible to optimize the use of materials so that no additional plastic is required.

Digital hallway cleaning with the ReycleMich app.

Just over a year ago, Coca-Cola Austria and Reclay jointly launched the "RecycleMich" app to increase collection efficiency, which uses attractive prices to encourage consumers to throw used beverage bottles and cans into the yellow garbage can. In the pilot project in Vienna, more than 400,000 packages have already been recycled as a result. On the occasion of World Recycling Day, Coca-Cola Austria is inviting Viennese consumers to participate in a digital hallway cleanup to collect as many bottles and cans as possible via the app in the coming weeks. All users who collect their beverage containers via the app during the competition period until April 24 will automatically be entered into a special prize draw - 50 books "Spaß mit Müll. Design from waste" with many upcycling ideas from "Selfmaid" Ingrid Luttenberger.

Together for a pledge

Currently, intensive work is already being done on the implementation of the decided deposit system on disposable beverage containers. "In solidarity with Austrian beverage producers and Austrian retailers, we see the use of reusable packaging and a deposit system on disposable beverage packaging as a holistic solution that is consumer-friendly and makes economic and ecological sense," says Philipp Bodzenta, Public Affairs Director at Coca-Cola Austria "Together, we are now all supporting the further steps to successfully launch the new chapter by 2025." Bodzenta also appeals to consumers in each of these steps. "When recycling correctly or operating a deposit system, we are all called upon - including consumers. It is important to ensure a functioning circular economy, because every used beverage container is a valuable raw material for the next beverage container. Waste was yesterday, if not the day before yesterday - raw material is today."

Note: This article has been translated using a computer system without human intervention. LUMITOS offers these automatic translations to present a wider range of current news. Since this article has been translated with automatic translation, it is possible that it contains errors in vocabulary, syntax or grammar. The original article in German can be found here.

https://www.yumda.com/en/news/1175242/world-recycling-day-innovative-steps-for-collection-and-recycling.html