In this section:
Circularity Scotland was established in 2021 with the specific purpose of administering Scotland’s Deposit Return Scheme (DRS). We were set up by a combination of drinks producers, trade associations and retailers and work with companies throughout the supply chain – from producers through to the hospitality industry, wholesalers and retailers. We have a simple mission - to make Scotland a cleaner, greener place.
We were successfully approved as a Scheme Administrator by the Scottish Government in 2021 which has tasked us to ensure the scheme is rolled out successfully and operates efficiently in line with the ultimate goal to recapture 90% of Scotland’s single-use drinks containers.
As well as handling the financial and logistical aspects of the scheme, we actively help drinks producers, importers, wholesalers and retailers to understand how Circularity Scotland can support them with the introduction of the Deposit Return Scheme. We will also play a part in educating the public about how the scheme will work for them and how it benefits Scotland’s economy and the environment.
Being appointed scheme administrator allows us to deliver a world-class deposit return scheme that works for everyone
Delivering a deposit return scheme in Scotland
We are the first company of this kind in the UK and we operate to exemplary standards of corporate governance. Our professional, and highly experienced team, ensure that deposits flow efficiently between producers, retailers and consumers, and that collection and sorting activities operate at the lowest possible cost. We determine and collect the fees that producers contribute to the system and the handling fees payable to return point operators. Revenue from unredeemed deposits and the sale of recyclable materials will be used to develop and refine the Scheme’s infrastructure and systems to improve recapture rates.
As a company created to benefit everyone in Scotland, we operate to the highest ethical and environmental standards. We use the most sustainable means of recovering containers from collection points, using reverse logistics wherever possible.
Being a responsible employer is one of our highest priorities. We support the creation of green jobs and circular economy employment across Scotland and demonstrate best practice in all of our activities encouraging inclusivity and universal adoption of the minimum living wage.
Membership
Our members include most of Scotland’s largest drinks producers, importers, wholesalers and retailers as well as key trade organisations that represent the interests of thousands of smaller and medium-sized companies. Membership is open to new members who meet the entry criteria.
FAQs
Organising a deposit return from scratch is a complex task and while individual producers are able to make their own arrangements to meet the new legal obligations, it makes financial and environmental sense to combine forces to create a single, world-class system. Circularity Scotland offers drinks producers efficiencies and economies of scale that would be hard to achieve independently. We also have the resources to bring insights and learning from the 40 other DRS operating in states and regions around the world to create the very best systems possible for Scotland.
Circularity Scotland brings together major drinks producers from both the alcoholic and non-alcoholic sectors along with drinks wholesalers and retailers. There are also a number of trade bodies representing businesses producing or selling smaller volumes of packaged drinks. It is in all of their interests to ensure that the administrator operates as fairly as possible and meets their legal requirements efficiently and economically.