DRS launch date confirmed: are retailers and brands for or against it?
The UK government has confirmed the deposit return scheme (DRS) will be launching in England and Northern Ireland in October 2027, a timeframe that has caused much disaccord in the grocery sector.
Circular economy minister Mary Creagh has affirmed the Labour government’s commitment to “clean up Britain and end the throwaway society” after the DRS was delayed on a number of occasions under the previous Conservative government.
The scheme will see customers able to claim a small monetary reward for returning empty single-use plastic, steel and aluminium drinks containers to a designated return point for recycling.
While many environmental organisations and big FMCG players have stood firm in their support for both the scheme itself and the timeframe in which it will be rolled out, many UK supermarkets and retailers have not agreed.
Who is in favour, who’s against it and how successful could the scheme actually be?
Who’s in favour?
The scheme has been described as a “silver bullet” by Keep Britain Tidy chief executive Allison Ogden-Newton, as she argues it will not only put an end to the millions of drinks containers littered, burned or buried every day, but also “save the taxpayer millions in clean-up costs and give recycling a real shot in the arm”
Last year, 97% of UK beaches surveyed by the Marine Conservation Society were polluted with bottles and cans, which chief executive Sandy Luk says, have been “posing [a] threat to marine life like seabirds and seals”.
A strong supporter of the scheme, she says that it will, “not only boost recycling and move us towards a circular economy where nothing is thrown away, but also significantly reduce this kind of beach pollution”.
While support from wildlife and environmental charities is expected, FMCG giant Coca-Cola – which has previously been named the world’s top plastic polluter – has also long been a backer of the DRS.
Last year, Coca-Cola Europacific Partners – the sole licensed bottler for the drink giant’s products in Europe – vice president Julian Hunt warned that the UK risks becoming the “dirty man of Europe” if there continues to be less incentive for Brits to recycle drinks containers.
GB Business Unit vice president and general manager Stephen Moorhouse affirms that while the scheme’s timeline is “challenging”, it is “achievable”.
“Now is the time for industry to roll up its sleeves to create a well-designed system that works for businesses, shoppers and the environment,” he says.
Who’s not a fan?
While many retailers are not against the intention behind the DRS, the challenge and cost of implementing it within the October 2027 timeframe makes it harder to win them over.
Ahead of the government confirming the launch date, UK supermarket chiefs had urged for it to be postponed, claiming the timeline was “not feasible”.
In a letter to environment secretary Steve Reed, the British Retail Consortium (BRC) detailed challenges that the scheme would inflict on retailers, such as significant costs.
Speaking of a series of cost pressures unveiled in the Budget, alongside changes such as the launch of the DRS, Tesco Group chief executive Ken Murphy says the supermarket would be, “very keen to work with the government to make sure that they are managed and mitigated to the greatest extent.”
According to shadow business secretary Andrew Griffith, the government’s impact assessment estimated a £228m per year net overhead to businesses, which he describes as “another unsustainable cost”, warning consumers would have to “bear the burden”.
How successful could the scheme be?
The scheme is currently used in more than 50 countries worldwide and the average return rate for European countries is 90%, according to global eNGO Reloop.
Across England, Scotland and Northern Ireland, consumers buy an estimated 30 billion single-use drinks containers each year – including 12 billion plastic drinks bottles and 13 billion drinks cans.
An estimated 6.5 billion single-use drinks bottles and cans per year go to waste rather than being recycled, with many ending up littered, according to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.
Creagh says the DRS is a “vital step as we stop the avalanche of rubbish that is filling up our streets, rivers and oceans and protect our treasured wildlife.
“Turning trash into cash also delivers on our Plan for Change by kickstarting clean growth, ensuring economic stability, more resilient supply chains, and new green jobs.”
However, the BRC has warned the DRS risks being ineffective, following the news that Wales is to move forward with its own deposit return scheme in a bid to encourage recycling, including glass bottles.
The British Retail Consortium, The Food and Drink Federation, The Association of Convenience Stores and The Industry Council for Packaging and Environment labelled the decision by the Welsh government as “extremely disappointing”.
They said in a joint statement that the announcement from the Welsh government would “only increase uncertainty for the scheme and cause confusion among consumers, who may feel cheated by their inability to redeem a deposit and perplexed by the inconsistent approaches just a few miles across the border”.
“Industry will need time to understand the full implications and will need to see the full detail of Welsh government’s approach. However, it seems highly likely this announcement and the uncertainty it brings will make the already very challenging 2027 implementation deadline even harder to deliver for England, Scotland, and Northern Ireland,” they add.
Is there an alternative?
While it had long been delayed, it seems the DRS will be going ahead, regardless of worries or backlash in the sector.
However, prior to a confirmed launch date, the concept of a digital deposit return scheme had been tried, tested and urged for by many UK retailers.
A digital DRS allows home digital scanning, which would see consumers able to recycle drinks containers at home while still getting their deposits back, and could be implemented alongside physical deposit return schemes in stores.
In November, Co-op and Ocado were among 60 businesses calling on the government to introduce a digital solution after the online supermarket trialled a digital deposit return scheme in 2023 – which, alongside UK-based tech company Polytag, sent 20p to digital wallets for each code scanned.
During the trial, which was deemed a success by Ocado, more than 20,000 milk bottles were scanned by consumers through their smartphones before being placed in their home kerbside recycling – totalling reward claims of up to £4,000.
Ocado Retail senior packaging and sustainability manager Laura Fernandez says: “Ocado Retail and Polytag have already clearly demonstrated that shoppers have an appetite for a digital deposit return scheme; we fully support the need for a modern, flexible scheme that embraces digital innovation.
“A digital option is a convenient and a necessary step toward creating a recycling system that really works. This approach would empower consumers, reduce operational strain on retailers, and accelerate progress toward the UK’s circular economy goals.”
Despite concerns made clear by retailers over costs and time to prepare for the scheme’s implementation, the government remains firm in its belief that it is a “vital step” to clear up the UK.
But, with two and a half years until the launch and hopes the government will provide those affected with clear support and guidance, there’s still time for a more united industry front.
