Irish beverage industry welcomes Deposit Return Scheme legislation

The Irish beverage industry welcomes the enactment of legislation providing for the introduction of a Deposit Return Scheme for plastic beverage bottles and drinks cans.

Ireland’s beverage industry is proudly committed to the adoption of a well-designed, best-in-class Deposit Return Scheme (DRS), tailored to the Irish marketplace.

Ibec’s Irish Beverage Council, supported by Drinks Ireland, has been coordinating industry’s preparations for the transformative introduction of a DRS since late 2019. Our DRS Project Group, representing the significant majority of the combined beverage market in Ireland, welcomes Minister Ryan’s enactment of enabling regulations as another important milestone in making DRS a reality.

As we now begin to review the legislation in detail, we will continue to engage with the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications in seeking the clarity industry needs to make the initiative a success.

Best practice and the experience of other European markets indicates that an implementation timeframe of between 18 and 24 months from the enactment of regulations is optimal to ensure delivery of the world class system that both industry and Government aspire to. As such, we look forward to working closely with our partners and stakeholders to best support the Government’s objectives and to swiftly deliver on the legislation’s aims.