| Name of Program |
SFS 2005:220 Ordinance on the Return System for Plastic Bottles and Metal Cans Replaced by: SFS 2022:1274 Ordinance on Producer Responsibility for Packaging
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| Law Summary | The ordinance sets up comprehensive extended producer responsibility rules for packaging that includes a deposit return system for plastic bottles and aluminum cans, as well as minimum recycled content standards, and mandatory participation in producer responsibility organizations for all producers of packaging. It sets a goal of a 90% recycling rate for all packaging. . | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Date Implemented |
6/30/2022 Previous iteration of the program was implemented 1/1/2006. Original program started in 1984. |
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| Containers Covered |
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| Beverages Covered | All ready-to-drink beverages, excluding dairy (juice was added in 2023). All ready-to-drink beverages will be covered in 2029. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Deposit and Handling Fees | Deposit value:
Metal: 2 SEK (€0.17, USD$0.18) |
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| Unclaimed Deposits | Retained by Returpack/Pantamera [1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Fees and Taxes | Returpack determines handling fees and deposit amounts [2] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Program Success |
Redemption Rates:
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Details
Sweden has had some form of container deposit legislation since 1984 and they have made concerted efforts to make the system simply understood and accessible to all. In many places it is possible to get your refund digitally, straight into your account. [8] The most recent legislation was passed in 2022, SFS 2022:1274, which repealed and replaced the prior container deposit ordinances with a broader extended producer responsibility law. The current law is the most comprehensive and requires all producers who sell packaging in Sweden to contract with a producer responsibility organization (PRO) that oversees that packaging when it becomes waste. [9] Returpak/Pantamera is the PRO in charge of deposit-eligible containers in Sweden. They are a private company owned by multiple food and beverage associations, supervised by the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency. [10]
Deposit values and fees
The law requires deposit containers to be marked with the amount of the deposit and the system that it belongs to (Returpack).
Aluminum cans: 2 Swedish Krona (SEK) (marked on label as 2 kr (0.17€))
PET bottles up to 1L: 2 SEK (marked on label as 2 kr (0.17€))
PET bottles over 1L: 3 SEK (marked on label as 3 kr (0.26€))
* Values update September 2025.
Returpack charges a sorting fee and a packaging fee to producers depending on the size of the container and material cost as well as administrative and punitive fees. The deposit is fully refundable, but the sorting and packaging fees, determined by Returpack, are paid by the beverage companies to Returpack. [11] Returpack coordinates the pickups of bottles and cans from stores and restaurants and pays them the deposit, financed by the producers. [12] The goal is for all deposit system transit to be free from fossil fuels by 2025. [13]
Recycling
Sweden currently has over 4,000 reverse vending machines and 70 'bulk-feed' machines in the deposit system. In addiition to this expansive coverage, the deposit system offers pickups of bottles and cans from restaurants, businesses, and gas stations. [14]
The 2022 Ordinance on Producer Responsibility for Packaging sets the following recycling objectives:
- All packaging: material recycling rate to be at least 65% per year up to and including the year 2029 and thereafter at least 70 percent.
- Plastic packaging with a deposit: material recycling rate should be at least 90% per year.
- Aluminum packaging with a deposit: material recycling rate to be at least 90% per year.
The ordinance also sets recycled content standards. Currently, all PET bottles may only be brought to the Swedish market if they contain a minimum content of 25% recycled plastic; that content amount will increase to 30% in 2030. This requirement does not apply to bottles with a volume of >3 liters, or which are intended for special medical purposes. The content of recycled plastic must be calculated as an average of the content of all bottles that the producer has placed on the Swedish market during a calendar year.
It is estimated that the program set a new record in 2024 by handling 2.8 billion beverage containers for recycling, an increase of 6% compared to the previous year. In 2024, the average person recycled 271 containers each. The system was estimated to have prevented 180,000 tons of CO2 emissions in 2024 - the equivalent to a full-year's emissions from a medium-sized Swedish city. [15]
Footnotes
[1] Private correspondence with Carita Classon, Returpack/Pantamera. August 9, 2023.
[2] Private correspondence with Carita Classon, Returpack/Pantamera. August 10, 2023.
[3] "Sustainability Report 2019." Returpack. Accessed August 9, 2023.
[4] "Sustainability Report 2020." Returpack. Accessed August 9, 2023.
[5] "Sustainability Report 2021." Returpack. Accessed August 9, 2023.
[6] "Sustainability Report 2022." Returpack. Accessed August 9, 2023.
[7] "Sustainability Report 2023." Returpack. Accessed March 28, 2025.
[8] Private correspondence with Carita Classon, Returpack/Pantamera. August 14, 2023.
[9] "Ordinance (2022:1274) on producer responsibility for packaging (Swedish)." Sveriges Riksdag (Legislative body of Sweden). Accessed August 9, 2023.
[10] "Our business." Pantamera. Accessed August 9, 2023.
[11] "Deposits and Fees Appenix 3." Returpack. February 1, 2023.
[12] "Global Deposit Book 2020." Reloop. Accessed August 8, 2023.
[13] See footnote 8.
[14] See footnote 8.
[15] "Returpack reports increased DRS activity in Sweden". Recycling Today. March 20, 2025.
Last Updated on March 28, 2025