Latvia DRS attains 80% return rate in 2 years with TOMRA’s reverse vending solutions

Latvia, a country on the Baltic Sea between Lithuania and Estonia, has announced its achievement of an 80 per cent return rate since it launched a deposit return system (DRS) for drink container recycling made of aluminium, plastic or glass.

Latvia launched a deposit return system (DRS) on February 1, 2022, with global reverse vending leader TOMRA Collection. TOMRA’s innovative reverse vending solutions keep bottles and cans in the loop of reuse and out of streets, oceans, and landfills.

Within only thirteen months between the appointment of the local DRS operator and the full public launch of the system, Latvia’s landmark achievement reflects an efficient return scheme of used containers for recycling.

The deposit return system in Latvia uses a return-to-retail model, where consumers need to return empty cans and bottles to store for recycling to get their deposit back. The deposit amount was set at €0.10.

After launching its DRS system, Latvia joined the other Baltic states of Estonia and Lithuania in offering a nationwide drink container recycling system.

The Latvian deposit return system aims to achieve a 90 per cent return rate of eligible drink containers for recycling to reduce waste reaching the Baltic Sea coast, rivers, forests, and parks.

Eligible containers include non-refillable (single-use) and refillable glass bottles, plastic bottles, and aluminium cans of 0.1 to 3 litres for carbonated and non-carbonated non-alcohol drinks, beer, and other fermented products with alcohol content of up to 6 per cent.