Dublin, Wednesday 5th June 2024: Ireland’s Deposit Return Scheme has announced record-breaking figures with over 9.2 million drinks containers returned over the June bank holiday weekend, the most returned to date over a three-day period.
The total number of containers returned through the scheme now stands at 164.9 million.
On Bank Holiday Monday alone, a new milestone was achieved as the one-day return record was shattered with an unprecedented 3.5 million containers returned.
Yesterday, Tuesday, June 4, also saw over 3 million containers returned by consumers.
The average daily return rate across the Bank Holiday Weekend was over 3 million containers. The average number of returned drinks containers continues to rise, as participation and support for the Scheme has grown continuously since launching on February 1.
Speaking on the growth to date, CEO of Re-turn, Ciaran Foley, said:
“The June bank holiday weekend saw incredible engagement from Irish consumers. We have achieved several milestones over the past month, and it has been incredibly positive to see the rising figures thanks to the Irish public who are now returning millions of drinks containers each day. Consumers have now brought back over 161 million bottles and cans. The start of June also marked the beginning of the Scheme’s next phase where every in-scope bottle and can must now display the Re-turn logo. This new phase, coupled with the fact that Summer is a key season for beverage sales, will likely result in higher returns. We’re confident that our nationwide network is ready to answer the demand.”
Increase in return rates during summer months
Ireland’s Deposit Return Scheme continues to increase its average recycling figures, with the summer period being the busiest yet as almost 2.5 million drinks containers are now being returned daily on average.
In total, over 78 million plastic bottles and cans were returned during the month of May. The rising figures showcase a widespread acceptance and effectiveness of the Scheme. It is evident that the public is coming together to avail of Ireland’s Deposit Return Scheme and move away from disposable culture to a circular economy model in an effort to protect the environment for generations to come.
Progress made since launch
Total Drinks Containers returned in Months:
• 2m containers February
• 20.8m containers in March
• 51.5m containers in April
• 78.3m containers in May
Daily Average of Drinks Containers returned in Months:
• 69,000 containers a day in February
• 670,000 containers a day in March
• 1.7 million containers a day in April
• 2.5 million containers a day in May