Late last year, Coca-Cola Inc. Sweden announced it would be the first market to transition to 100 percent recycled PET bottles.
Now two more markets are making the switch, with a transition to solely recycled PET bottles for Coca-Cola in Netherlands and Norway, with regional closed-loop recycling systems supported by the Dutch and Norwegian Deposit Return Schemes.
The Netherlands will transition all of its locally-produced small plastic bottles to recycled material in October, including iconic brands such as Coca-Cola, Sprite and Fanta. Large plastic bottles will follow in 2021.
The switch to 100 percent recycled PET in the Netherlands will eliminate the use of more than 10,000 metric tons of new virgin plastic, amounting to a 21 percent reduction in the carbon footprint of its plastic bottles per year.
Coca-Cola in Norway will transition to 100 percent recycled PET for all plastic bottles that it produces locally in the first half of 2021, a move that will eliminate around 4,300 tonnes of new virgin plastic per year, and will deliver an annual 28 percent reduction in the carbon footprint of its plastic bottles.
Both Coca-Cola in Netherlands and Norway will be the first companies in their respective countries to move their entire portfolio of locally produced plastic bottles to 100 percent recycled PET.
Coca-Cola says the switch to recycled plastic in Netherlands and Norway is made possible by the rapidly expanding and effective Deposit Return Schemes operational in both countries.
Supported by innovation in recycling technologies, the programs enable the production of high quality recycled PET resin in both Dutch and Norwegian markets, accelerating the transition to local circular economies for PET in these countries. The 100 percent recycled PET bottles produced in each market will be fully recyclable, so they can be used again as raw material for new bottles.
As part of their joint Sustainability Action Plan, This is Forward, Coca-Cola European Partners and The Coca-Cola Co. in Western Europe have pledged that by 2025, Coca-Cola will collect a can or bottle for every one it sells and ensure that all its packaging is 100 percent recyclable and by 2023 will ensure that at least 50 percent of the content of its PET bottles will come from recycled content.