Reloop commissioned EY to consider the possible outcomes of three key pieces of legislation:

• The Anti-Waste and Circular Economy (AGEC) law in France; and
• The Single-Use Plastics Directive (SUPD) and the Packaging and Packaging Waste Directive (PPWR) in Europe.

All three pieces of legislation are focused on reducing the environmental impact of packaging by increasing collection rates of packaging for recycling, as well as reducing packaging and developing reusable formats.

Three deposit system scenarios

The study focused on three scenarios:

• A mixed deposit return system, where both single-use and refillable beverage containers are included; and
• Two scenarios focused on deposit systems that only collect refillable containers

Mixed deposit return system is the better option

The findings of the study are that a mixed deposit return system is the better option, because:

• it will increase the likelihood of achieving the necessary regulatory objectives laid out in the AGEC, SUPD and PPWR.
• it is the strongest option for accelerating the rollout of refillable beverage containers by 2026.
• it is more economically efficient, with estimated savings of €169m per year.
• it will be better understood by consumers, leading to a greater acceptance of the system; and
• it limits any unfair advantage that single-use packaging could have in the market against reusable packaging.

The study also confirmed that to achieve these benefits, there will need to be:

• the adoption of new behaviours by consumers.
• significant logistical changes for beverage distributors.
• an adjustment to existing kerbside collection systems, recognising the changes to the financial and material flows.