Poland’s new deposit-refund system has doubled plastic bottle recycling, says climate minister

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Notes from Poland is run by a small editorial team and is published by an independent, non-profit foundation that is funded through donations from our readers. We cannot do what we do without your support.

Poland’s new deposit-refund system has already doubled the proportion of plastic bottles that are being recycled since it was launched in October, says climate minister Paulina Hennig-Kloska.

However, she also acknowledged public criticism of how it operates and said that the ministry would continue to implement improvements. One recent opinion poll found that half of Poles dislike the system while only a quarter approve of it.

The system requires consumers to pay a deposit ranging from 0.5 zloty to 1 zloty when buying products in plastic or glass bottles or metal cans. The deposit is then reimbursed to consumers when they bring the packaging back to a store or another collection point.

Speaking to broadcaster RMF this week, Hennig-Kloska said that the proportion of plastic bottles being recycled was now double what it was before the system was introduced. She later confirmed that the recycling rate is now 60%.

A spokesperson for her ministry told Notes from Poland that, under the previous system, in which consumers returned plastic containers in yellow-coloured bins or bags, the recycling rate stood at around 30%. The statutory goal of the new system is to collect 77% of containers by 2028, rising to 90% by 2029.

However, Hennig-Kloska also acknowledged that there has been public criticism of the system and admitted that some “logistical adjustments” are needed to improve its functioning.

She said that she would soon meet with operators to discuss improving signage for bottle return points, particularly in stores where returns are handled by employees and not machines. “Customers need to know where they can return bottles if a given store does not have a machine,” she explained.

A recent IBRiS poll for the Rzeczpospolita daily found that 46.3% of respondents have used the system. However, only 27.6% of respondents assessed it positively, down from around 60% when the system was first launched. Meanwhile, 50.5% assessed it negatively, while 19.8% said they had no opinion.

Citing surveys and comments made by users on social media, the newspaper reported a range of complaints, including that machines for returning containers often do not work or, in the case of small localities, are simply not available.

Another poll conducted by IQS Opinion Research Institute as part of a campaign for World Recycling Day this week found that the most commonly cited reasons for people not using the system were a lack of return machines and a lack of space at home for storing empty packaging.

Another poll by Ariadna for the news website Wirtualna Polska found that 56% of respondents were discouraged from using the system because they were unable to crush the bottles before returning them.

Piotr Okurowski, CEO of Kaucja.pl, which is one of the operators of the system, told Rzeczpospolita that such frustrations “do not surprise us at this stage of implementation, as we assumed that the launch of the system would pose challenges”.

Meanwhile, figures from Confederation (Konfederacja), a far-right group that sits in parliament, have called the system a “scam” in which consumers “line the pockets of major corporations.”

They allege that deposit funds from unreturned containers are paid out to a firm that manages the system’s operations, including on bonuses for its executives, rather than for logistical improvements.

In response, Hennig-Kloska told radio broadcaster RMF that, while deposits are used to support the “non-profit” company running the system, surplus funds are spent on improving logistical functioning.

She denied that any bonuses had been paid but added that, “if there are any wrongdoings in this area, we will certainly eliminate them.”

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Notes from Poland is run by a small editorial team and published by an independent, non-profit foundation that is funded through donations from our readers. We cannot do what we do without your support.

Main image credit: Żabka press materials

Olivier Sorgho

Olivier Sorgho is senior editor at Notes from Poland, covering politics, business and society. He previously worked for Reuters.