A group of big recycling companies has launched a drive towards a digital deposit return scheme (DDRS) in the UK.
Not-for-profit organisation DDRS Alliance – whose members include Circularity Solutions, Recycl3r and Valpak – joined with technology outfit Polytag to create the movement.
The two bodies pledged to work collaboratively to demonstrate the viability and convenience of a DDRS.
It comes after environment secretary Steve Barclay admitted that the government’s plan to introduce a DRS next year was no longer “realistic”.
DDRS Alliance ran a 16-week trial in Wales last year using QR codes, and consumers returned 19,000 containers, more than half of them through kerbside collection.
Meanwhile Polytag ran a nationwide with grocery delivery giant Ocado Retail, during which 20,000 rewards were claimed by Ocado customers via their smartphones in just 56 days.
Duncan Midwood, co-founder of DDRS Alliance, said: “Deposit return Schemes have demonstrated across Europe that consumers respond to a financial incentive to return drink containers for recycling.
“DDRS brings the solution to the modern day by providing consumers with a more convenient solution mirroring their lifestyles.”
