Czechia introducing deposit for PET bottles and cans

Deposits are nothing new in the Czech Republic: when buying certain types of drinks in glass bottles, CZK 3 are added to the price and refunded once the empty bottle is returned. A similar principle is now to be introduced for drink containers made of plastic and metal. Producers and sellers will be obliged to charge a deposit on top of the price of the beverage; its amount should be set at CZK 4 to 5, uniform for all disposable drink containers. To get the deposit back, consumers will have to return undamaged drink containers, including the label, to a designated place.

Drink containers newly subject to deposit

The deposit will be charged for all soft drinks in plastic bottles or cans of 0.1 to 3 litres. Alcoholic beverages with an alcohol content of up to 15% will also be subject to the charge. Milk, dairy product and disposable glass packaging will be exempt; this means that standard wine bottles will not be burdened with a deposit.

Returning empties

According to the ministry's initial information, the take-back obligation should apply to all shops and petrol stations with an area of more than 50 m². Online retailers will also have to accept their customers’ empties. Small shops, kiosks, and municipalities may join the system on a voluntary basis. Especially for small shops, this will mean additional obligations, making it more difficult for them to sell plastic- and metal-packaged beverages. To compare: in Slovakia where deposits for PET bottles and cans were introduced over a year ago, the obligation to take-back the packaging only applies to shops with an area of more than 300 m².

Deposit system operator

The organisation and functioning of the deposit charging system will be ensured by an operator: an entity established by manufacturers that supply more than 80% of disposable drink containers to the market. The operator will oversee the setting up of the entire system, its administration, coordination, and financing.

Improved sorting of (plastic) waste

By charging a deposit for PET bottles and cans, the legislators aim to improve the sorting of these types of drink containers. According to EKO-KOM’s data, in 2021 only 43% of the total volume of plastic waste was recycled, 32% was incinerated, and 15% was not sorted at all. As for aluminium from which cans are often made, the sorting was even worse: only 27% was recycled, meaning that 63% of aluminium was not sorted at all.

In 2029, 90% of this waste is to be taken-back. Sorting of drink containers separately from other plastic or metal waste will ensure a supply of input materials for recycling companies, and the packaging should thus return to the market as reusable recycled material.

Thanks to the deposit, it will be easier to meet targets for the mandatory content of recycled plastics in beverage containers, as set by the Packaging Act, according to which, from 2025, PET bottles with a capacity of up to 3 litres must contain at least 25% of recycled plastic.

According to the ministry's estimate, the deposit for PET bottles and cans should be charged starting from 2025. The draft amendment to the Packaging Act has not yet been published, so it is not certain what the final form the system will take.