International Review of Waste Management Policy - Department of ...

17.7 Effects on Technical Change / Innovation
Following the introduction of the one-way-deposit, one-way packaging materials were
optimized, e.g. new manufacturing processes for cans and glass packaging, giving
material savings of over 30% relative to 1991, when the Packaging Ordinance came
into force.
Following the introduction of the one-way deposit on drinking bottles, manufacturers
offered a variety of deposit-return machines, some machines taking all types and
sizes of drinking packages from PET to glass.
17.8 Social and Distributional Consequences
The social implications of the policy do not obviously affect any one of group
households in an adverse way compared to others. There is the potential for a limited
regressive impact.
Reusable containers were being squeezed out of the market before the mandatory
deposit was introduced. However, after 1 st of January 2003, there was an upsurge in
the market for re-usable packaging. In the first year after the introduction of the
deposit, clear growth was recorded in the use of reusable packaging. Therefore the
deposit played a role in maintaining employment in the reusable sector by stabilising
reusable systems. Furthermore the deposit on cans is also creating jobs amongst
manufacturers of deposit-return machines and in logistics enterprises.
In terms of economic implications, drinks sellers have had to cope with a number of
different types of packaging. Each chain responded differently to the deposit rules.
The companies claimed that up to 25,000 people would loose their jobs in 2004 as a
result of the deposit. This has been disputed by the Federal Ministry of the
Environment, which speaks of a job shift from large-scale production to medium-sized
enterprises.
On the other hand, contrary trends can be observed. In the sector for returnable
packaging, major investments took place and new jobs were created. The German
beer brewery “Krombacher”, for example, has invested 25 million Euros since the
implementation of the deposit policy. The one-way deposit has reportedly created
14,400 new jobs in parts of the beverage economy, according to an unpublished
study for the Federal Ministry for Economy and Labour in the first half of 2008.
For the small and medium-size breweries in Bavaria, which only sell bottled beer, the
introduction of the deposit on cans proved to be extremely positive. Double digit
growth rates for small and medium-seized breweries were not unusual. After years of
declining market shares, the downward trend was reversed. 383
The implementation of the new deposit regulation has affected the whole beverages
market. The impact on beverage sales was notable. Sales volumes have fallen in
some sectors subject to the deposit, and increased in others.
383 EUWID, No. 35 08/2003, p. 11.
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