Retail trade Swiss plastic collection system available in first municipalities
As of today, a new collection system for plastic packaging and drinks cartons is available in the first Swiss municipalities. The aim is to establish a nationwide recycling system throughout Switzerland.
16.01.2025, 13:56
SDA
Recypac's plastic collection service is currently available in the city of Bern, Dietikon, Greifensee, Oetwil an der Limmat and Schlieren. Other municipalities will follow in the coming weeks, according to a press release issued on Thursday. Recypac currently requires approval from each municipality in order to offer the collection system.
The non-profit industry organization is backed by retailers, food and packaging producers, recyclers and municipalities. These include Aldi Suisse, Coop, Denner, Emmi, Lidl Switzerland, Migros, Nestlé, Unilever and Valora.
"We have been working for years to simplify our packaging and make it recyclable," said Eugenio Simioni, Head of Nestlé Suisse, in the press release. The new infrastructure now makes it possible to recycle the packaging.
Coop and Migros have already collected plastic packaging in some regions. However, this system has reached its limit, according to Christopher Rohrer from Migros. "A nationally standardized solution brings important efficiency gains and is in the interest of consumers."
Plastic collection is not free of charge for consumers. The bags, which are available in four sizes from municipalities and retailers, cost between one (17-liter bag) and four francs (110-liter bag). However, the price is usually lower than for a typical chargeable bag.
Consumers collect plastic packaging and drinks cartons at home. The waste does not need to be washed. The so-called Recybags can currently be returned to the retailers Coop and Migros and to the municipalities.
The collected plastic is currently still being recycled in neighboring countries. According to the industry organization, the resulting recyclate can be used in Swiss industry, for example. In future, it should also be possible to use it to produce food packaging again.
In Switzerland, only 3% of plastic packaging is currently recycled. The industry organization has set itself the goal of achieving a recycling rate of 55% for plastic packaging and 70% for beverage cartons by 2030.
