The idea of recycling our used plastic items is one of the few topics that nearly all of humanity can agree on. It is intuitive that it is better to re-use our waste rather than to send it to landfill, incineration, or worst of all for it to end up contaminating the wild environment.
Attitudes to recycling vary greatly around the world, along with the sophistication and accessibility of recycling channels. PET bottles are one of the most easily and widely recycled plastics, however bottle return rates vary greatly, as can be seen in the table below.
Country | PET Bottle Recovery rate % | Deposit scheme? |
Denmark | 96 | Yes |
Germany | 95 | Yes |
Japan | 93 | No |
Korea | 85 | No |
Spain | 65 | No |
UK | 59 | No |
Brazil | 55 | No |
Mexico | 50 | No |
Portugal | 44 | No |
USA | 29 | Some states |
Australia | 27 | Some states |
Sources: Europe (Useda 2023), Japan (PET Bottle Recycling Promotion Council), Korea (MDPI report 2022), Australia (Australian Plastics Flows and Fates Study 2020-21 – National Report), USA (National Association for PET Container Resources 2022), Mexico (Alpla/IMER Report 2022)
It can be argued recovery rates are boosted by container deposits (Denmark, Germany) however some countries (Japan, Korea, Spain and UK) have high to relatively high recovery rates without deposit schemes, so cultural and other factors are at play as well.
The single largest and most important PET bottle market in the world is the USA, however the overall bottle recovery rate has remained stagnant for the last decade at around 30%. This is in spite of the fact that recycling facilities are widely available, and the brand owners are spending large amounts of resources to educate consumers and promote the return of bottles after use.
On-pack “Recycle Me” campaign in USA
In 2023 the demand for recovered PET exceeded supply in most of the world, while industrial prices for post-consumer PET were actually higher than for virgin plastic. Therefore the barrier to increasing the quantity of recovered PET from bottles lies primarily with persuading more consumers to return their bottles rather than an inherent lack of demand.
So what exactly is holding back consumers from returning more of their used bottles?
The fact that the recycling process is invisible and difficult to communicate does not help. It is difficult for any consumer to sort through the complicated and conflicting sustainability claims from manufacturers, governments and media. Skepticism is another factor. Media reports that cast doubt on the true end fate of returned plastics are widespread in 2024. However, accurate or not, it is much better to recycle some bottles rather than send them all to landfill or incineration.
Convenience and availability of recycling channels are another driver, though inconvenience can be overcome with other motivators. In Germany consumers routinely hand-carry their empty bottles from home to the supermarkets and are (mostly) happy to stand in line to receive a small bottle deposit return from a reverse vending machine. The benefit-per-hour is very low but German consumers are willing to suffer the inconvenience. Why?
Perhaps a better way to understand this is to ask the question - why do we bother to return bottles at all?
There are many motivations why we recycle but I suggest the one common, simple emotion shared by all of us in sending waste for recovery is that in some way it makes us feel good.
Put into words: “I feel a sense of satisfaction when I recycle”.
At Horto-Logic we believe passionately that the activities we are undertaking with the Water-Witch can have a significant role to improve PET bottle return rates.
If, when we return our bottles and caps, we can see that our returns are contributing to actively improving the planet and people’s lives, it becomes a very powerful motivator. Feeding people, planting forests, and saving precious water is tangible, visible, and simple to understand.
Even if it is not possible to use all returned bottles for this purpose, it is enough to know we as individuals are doing our part to make a difference.
I will leave the final word with The Dalai Lama.
“Anyone who thinks that they are too small to make a difference has never tried to fall asleep with a mosquito in the room.”
Nicholas Cook
Founder, Horto-Logic
Saint Paul MN, July 2024
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