TOMRA marks one year of success with Ireland’s Deposit Return Scheme

TOMRA celebrates a successful year of partnership, helping reduce litter by 50% and support Ireland’s recycling goals

As Ireland’s Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) marks its first anniversary, TOMRA Collection is celebrating a year of progress and partnership with retailers in making container returns a success. 

Since the scheme’s launch, TOMRA has partnered with Irish retailers to integrate reverse vending machines (RVMs), making recycling more efficient and accessible. With littered bottles and cans down 50% nationwide, Ireland is on track to meet its EU recycling targets, reinforcing the environmental and social impact of deposit return.

Today TOMRA provides advanced collection and recycling solutions to more than 60 different markets worldwide, collectively capturing 46 billion used bottles every year. The Norwegian recycling group currently operates in more than 40 countries and has deployed approximately 85,000 reverse vending machines worldwide.

Since the scheme launched on February 1, 2024, Irish consumers have returned more than a billion drink containers, according to new figures from Re-turn, the scheme’s operator. 

Meanwhile, research from Re-turn shows that 84% of the public have participated, leading to a 50% drop in littered bottles and cans across the country. These early results put Ireland on a strong path toward meeting its EU-mandated plastic bottle collection targets under the Single-Use Plastics Directive.

Throughout the past year, TOMRA has worked closely with large and medium-sized retailers to integrate reverse vending machines into stores, helping businesses adapt to deposit returns efficiently. 

TOMRA’s range of reverse vending solutions, including the space-saving TOMRA B5 Combi and the high-capacity TOMRA R1.

Ciarán Foley, chief executive officer, Re-turn, said: “One year since its launch, Ireland’s Deposit Return Scheme has exceeded all expectations. To date, more than a billion drink containers have been recycled through the scheme. At current rates, Ireland is on track to recycle approximately 630 million more bottles and cans on an annual basis than we recycled prior to the introduction of the scheme. 

“As we have also seen in the recent Irish Business Against Litter Survey, can and bottle litter has fallen by 50% across Irish communities. Beyond the positive environmental impacts of the scheme, it is extremely gratifying to see how the Irish people have embraced it on a social and charitable level. Clubs, schools, and community organisations all across the country are now using deposit returns to fund vital causes. We look forward to continuing to build on the positive environmental and social effects of the scheme in 2025.”

Peter Whelan, managing director, TOMRA Collection Ireland, said: “Thanks to the unwavering support from all sectors of society, we are on track to make Ireland a leader in sustainability… With year one complete, TOMRA is now looking ahead to year two and beyond, focusing on optimising the deposit return experience and helping Ireland to achieve its recycling objectives.”