In an exclusive conversation with Chris Latham-Warde, Programme Manager of Every Can Counts a not-for-profit communications programme delivered by Alupro across the UK and Ireland. According to Mr Chris, deposit return scheme (DRS) is a great way to encourage people to partake in aluminium cans recycling. He shared 70 per cent of respondents are supportive of DRS in a consumer research conducted in 2025.

Every Can Counts programme is a mission to inspire, encourage and empower people to recycle their empty drink cans, wherever they are. Chris joined Alupro in 2017 and worked on a variety of campaigns encouraging consumers to recycle their aluminium packaging before becoming Every Can Counts Programme Manager in 2019. He now oversees the delivery of Every Can Counts in the UK and Ireland, with activities spanning festival and event activations, installation campaigns, digital marketing, brand partnerships, community engagement and more.  

AL Circle: With DRS proving effective in select European markets, expectations are rising ahead of its planned rollout across England and Northern Ireland in 2027. How much further upside do you see for beverage can recycling as DRS expands, and what is your projected recycling rate for Europe by 2027 and beyond?

Chris Latham-Warde - The introduction of the Deposit Return Scheme in the UK provides an opportunity to enhance existing on-the-go recycling initiatives, supplying consumers with a convenient way to appropriately dispose of their used drink cans and helping the nation move further towards a truly circular economy.

Endlessly recyclable and back on shop shelves in just 60 days, aluminium is a very high value material when it comes to recyclability, and the DRS will help the UK to harness this through an improved national collection system.

And above all else, we can expect the DRS to support increased recycling rates by adding a financial incentive that further motivates consumers to do the right thing and return their empty cans for recycling.

AL Circle: How do you see individuals responding to Deposit Return Schemes in Europe so far? Do you observe notable differences in engagement across age groups?

Chris Latham-Warde - Sentiment around the introduction of the Deposit Return Scheme in the UK is positive.

According to consumer research we commissioned in 2025, 70 per cent of respondents are supportive of DRS. Interestingly, support for the scheme grows steadily with age. 59 per cent  of Gen Z is in favour of the initiative, increasing to 66 per cent of Millennials, 75 per cent  of Gen X, and 77 per cent of Boomers – challenging assumptions around generational divides on climate issues. 

Other figures paint a positive picture of the DRS in the UK, with 86 per cent of respondents believing the scheme will encourage them to recycle more. Results also indicate that the initiative could hold consumers accountable for recycling, with 89 per cent  claiming they feel responsible for returning their used containers when deposit schemes are in place.

Trust levels are also strong, with 87 per cent  confident that containers returned through a DRS are recycled.

Meanwhile, less than half (43 per cent ) of respondents would say they are familiar with the way a deposit scheme works, suggesting there is work to be done to educate consumers ahead of the launch of the DRS in the UK.

Findings taken from consumer research conducted in 2025, using a UK sample of 1,000.

AL Circle: Greenwashing remains a growing concern in sustainability narratives. What is your perspective on greenwashing within aluminium recycling? Do you believe aluminium’s recyclability is sometimes promoted without fully disclosing the underlying challenges or limitations?

Chris Latham-Warde: When it comes to effectively encouraging consumers to recycle and dispose of used drink cans and other containers responsibly, trust is important. This includes faith that goods labelled as recyclable genuinely are and confidence that they will be handled appropriately when people follow the correct procedure.  

As part of this, it’s crucial we advocate for increased transparency on all packaging, so consumers feel adequately informed, allowing them to make educated purchasing decisions and understand their impact on the environment.

Promoting clarity from the point of purchase through the entire recycling process empowers consumers to take charge of their recycling habits, ultimately encouraging increased engagement and recycling rates.

And while there’s lots to be done to increase awareness, there’s also a gap in conversations about the value of aluminium when it comes to recyclability – with not enough consumers aware of the high value of the material, including that it can be recycled time and time again, through a recycling process that takes as little as 60 days from start to finish.

Improving awareness in this regard will paint a more compelling picture for consumers, helping people to think twice about how they dispose of their used drink cans.

AL Circle: The UK recycled 157,049 tonnes of aluminium packaging in 2024, with beverage can recycling reaching 81 per cent, according to the National Packaging Waste Database. How did performance evolve in 2025, and what is your outlook for the UK aluminium packaging recycling market in 2026 and the years ahead?

Chris Latham-Warde: With the introduction of the Deposit Return Scheme in 2027, we expect to not only see a continued increase in the recycling rate for drink cans but also the collection of a higher quality of recycled material, as the cans returned through the DRS will be uncontaminated by other materials. This higher quality recycled material is more suitable for can-to-can recycling so, as long as the material is prioritised for this purpose, the scheme should indeed allow for more recycled content to be used in the production of new beverage cans.