| Law Summary | 2003 Verpakkingsverordening Productschap Dranken ("Packaging Management Decree") | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Date Implemented | Enacted in 2004, implemented in 2005 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Containers & Beverages Covered |
Plastic containers and metal cans <1 L [1]:
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| Refundable Deposit |
PET plastic bottles: €0.15 (US $0.28) |
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| Handling Fees |
VBR: 0.06250€ ($0.071) per bottle |
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| Unclaimed Deposits |
Retained by producer/importer |
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| Program Success |
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Details
Previously, the deposit system in the Netherlands is voluntary; producers and importers are not required to register bottles in the deposit system. Some retailers have elected to establish their own deposit system; Aldi partially refunds deposits, and Lidi does not reimburse deposits. [12] According to the Netherlands Return Packaging Foundation (Stichting Retourverpakkingen NL), only one company was using refillable PET bottles as of late 2018. [13]
The Netherlands Ministry of Environment announced that the deposit scheme would become mandatory. It was expanded to small PET bottles (less than 1 liter) in July 2021 and aluminum cans in December 2022. Previously, only plastic containers up to 0.8 liters containing water and soft drinks were accepted. [14] The deposit is €0.15 with a collection target goal of 90%. [15]
The system uses return-to-retail. About 11% of redemption is manual, and 89% uses automated systems (reverse vending machines/RVMs). [16] As of 2023, there were roughly 5,400 collection points in the country. [17]
As of December 2023, the system administrator Verpact (previously known as Afvalfonds Verpakkingen) had not yet achieved a 90% collection target rate, receiving an official warning from government inspectors regarding the system's performance. [18] The government mandated an action plan from companies to bolster the collection rate, including additional enforcement actions and expanding covered beverages to include juice.
Footnotes
[1] "Dutch introduce 15 cent deposits on small plastic drinks bottles from 2021." DutchNews. April 25, 2020.
[2] "Monitoring Verpakkingen Resultaten inzameling en recycling 2014." Afvalfonds Verpakkingen. Last accessed September 20, 2023.
[3] "Monitoring Verpakkingen Resultaten inzameling en recycling 2015." Afvalfonds Verpakkingen. Last accessed September 20, 2023.
[4] "Monitoring Verpakkingen Resultaten inzameling en recycling 2016." Afvalfonds Verpakkingen. Last accessed September 20, 2023.
[5] "Monitoring Verpakkingen Resultaten inzameling en recycling 2017." Afvalfonds Verpakkingen. Last accessed September 20, 2023.
[6] "Monitoring Verpakkingen Resultaten inzameling en recycling 2018." Afvalfonds Verpakkingen. Last accessed September 20, 2023.
[7] "Monitoring Verpakkingen Resultaten inzameling en recycling 2019." Afvalfonds Verpakkingen. Last accessed September 20, 2023.
[8] "Monitoring Verpakkingen Resultaten inzameling en recycling 2020." Afvalfonds Verpakkingen. Last accessed September 20, 2023.
[9] Ibid.
[10] "Toelichting op het Verslagleggingsformulier Recycling Verpakkingen Resultaten recycling verpakkingen 2021." Afvalfonds Verpakkingen. Last accessed September 20, 2023.
[11] "Toelichting op het Verslagleggingsformulier Recycling Verpakkingen Resultaten recycling verpakkingen 2022." Afvalfonds Verpakkingen. Last accessed September 20, 2023.
[12] Personal communication from Raymond Gianotten, Retourverpakking, December 13, 2018 (RG 2018).
[13] "Sorteren." Retourverpakking, last accessed February 2020.
[14] Ibid.
[15] "Global Deposit Book 2020: An Overview of Deposit Systems for One-Way Beverage Containers." Reloop Inc. December 15, 2020.
[16] "Statiegeld op blik een feit." Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management, February 3, 2021. Translated through personal correspondence with Wolfgang Ringel, TOMRA Systems.
[17] "Inspectors get tough on bottle and can recycling, threaten fines." DutchNews, December 21, 2023.
Last Updated on March 1, 2024.