UNIVERSAL REUSABLE BOTTLE

The Universal Reusable Bottle model entails the collection, cleaning and reuse of bottles across industry by any participating brand.

TARGET USERS: Individuals, Businesses, Industry, Government

KEY CONSIDERATIONS: Universal packaging that is designed for collection and reuse requires industry cooperation across brands and sectors, of which several notable cooperatives have emerged to lead such efforts.

MORE INFORMATION: https://www.academia.edu/41735179/Technological_Entrepreneurship_and_Global_Development_What_Is_the_Coca_Cola_Sustainability_Initiative_Effect_on_Production_Basil_Al-Halil_4780930

Collections: BEST PRACTICES, REUSE

THE PROBLEM

One million plastic bottles are bought around the world every minute, with the volume expected to grow 20% by 2021. That's more than half a trillion bottles sold each year by the end of the decade.

THE SOLUTION

In a circular system, customers pay an indirect deposit when purchasing soda in a refillable bottle by receiving a discount on their next purchase when they return the empty bottle to the store – a reward feature that reportedly ensures a return rate of above 90%, creates a strong attachment to the brand, as well as an increased likelihood of repurchase.

Retailers then store the empty bottles and give them back to Coca-Cola, for example, upon delivery of a new order. Next, Coca-Cola brings the multi-branded mix of bottles back to a bottling facility where paper labels are washed off and bottles are cleaned, refilled, and rebranded with a fresh label before being redistributed.

Bottles last up to 25 cycles and are recycled at the end of their useful lives, along with their 100% recyclable labels.

This initiative was made possible by collaboration across numerous Coca-Cola Brazil soda brands in 2018 when Coca Cola invested $25 million in unifying the design of their reusable PET bottles and $400 million in expanding their reuse infrastructure (bottle cleaning and refilling facilities) as part of their aspiration to significantly scale up reusable packaging by 2030.

The company says that creating a universal bottle design across all brands significantly reduces washing, filling, and costs in terms of reverse logistics, while at the same time lowering carbon emissions. The reusable model reportedly replaces 200 million single-use bottles per year in Brazil and was Coca-Cola’s fastest-growing packaging format in 2018 in Latin America.

By the end of 2020, Coca-Cola Brazil is aiming to have invested a total of R$ 1.6 billion in the expansion of returnable lines, factory equipment, container purchase, consumer engagement and support to recycling cooperatives.

Source: Packaging Europe