Coca-Cola aims to transition towards a closed-loop recycling system that is supported by local deposit return schemes in the Netherlands and Norway

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Coca-Cola European Partners aims to transition towards a closed-loop recycling system. (Credit: Coca-Cola European Partners)

Coca-Cola European Partners (CCEP) has announced its commitment to transition from the use of virgin oil-based plastic in PET bottles to 100% recycled plastic (rPET) bottles in the Netherlands and Norway.

The move marks Coca-Cola’s important transition towards a closed-loop recycling system that is supported by local deposit return schemes in two European countries.

It also forms part of Coca-Cola European Partners’ wider plan to eliminate new virgin oil-based PET in all of its bottles within the next decade.

Coca-Cola to use 100% rPET for plastic bottles from October 2020

Effective from October 2020, Coca-Cola will start using 100% rPET for all plastic bottles, starting with locally produced small plastic bottles. From next year, it plans to remove large plastic bottles.

The company expects the transition to eliminate the use of more than 10,000 tonnes of new virgin oil-based plastic in the Netherlands while reducing plastic bottles’ carbon footprint by 21% per year compared to the rPET level before the transition.

In Norway, Coca-Cola plans to switch to 100% rPET for all plastic bottles that it manufactures locally during the first half of 2021.

The move is expected to cut around 4,300 tonnes of new virgin oil-based plastic a year as well as reduce the carbon footprint of its plastic bottles per year by 28%.

Coca-Cola European Partners sustainability vice-president Joe Franses said: “Today’s announcement that Coca-Cola European Partners Netherlands and Coca-Cola European Partners Norway are making the switch to 100% rPET marks a vitally important step forwards on our journey to eliminating new virgin oil-based plastic across all our plastic bottles within a decade.

“Crucially, this announcement provides a compelling case for the role that Deposit Return Schemes can play in the creation of local circular economies for beverage packaging.

“Markets with well-designed DRS such as those in Sweden, the Netherlands and Norway not only have high collection rates but also have the capacity to collect a higher grade of material with less contamination.”

Recently, CCEP launched new recyclable paperboard packaging solution for multipack cans in Spain, as part of its sustainable efforts.