Tomra makes pitch for reverse vending in UK

The Collection Solutions business unit of Norway-based Tomra, a maker of reverse vending machines (RVMs) for bottles and cans, says it welcomes renewed interest in a deposit-return scheme (DRS) in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

States Truls Haug, managing director of Tomra Collection Solutions in the United Kingdom and Ireland, “We are encouraged to see the launch of this consultation from DEFRA [the U.K. Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs], which is extremely thorough and carefully considered. Tomra is involved in deposit return schemes in more than 60 markets, so we have vast experience in this area. We look forward to sharing our knowledge on how to ensure the scheme is as effective as possible.”

Continues Haug, “Of the two options presented within the consultation, we support the ‘all in’ model as opposed to an ‘on-the-go’ model, as we believe this would have maximum impact on increasing recycling rates. Successful deposit return schemes can play a significant role in sparking a recycling revolution and we will be watching with interest to see the consultation results in due course.”

Tomra says it is seeing growing demand around the world for countries to increase their recycling rates for bottles and cans as a means to fight litter, including plastic in the ocean, and to conserve scarce resources.

Container deposit schemes can see up to 98 percent of beverage containers returned to recycling (as happens in Germany, says Tomra. With one million plastic bottles purchased around the world every minute, and at a pace estimated to rise by 20 percent by 2021, the demand is there to prevent and reduce the negative impacts that improper beverage container disposal can have on the planet, says the firm.

Tomra Collection Solutions, founded in 1972, says it has more than 82,000 installations in more than 60 markets, and that its RVMs capture 35 billion used beverage containers each year.