Accolade backs Scotland’s DRS

By Lisa Riley

Published: 22 February, 2021

Accolade Wines has announced its support for Scotland’s Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) as a founding partner.

As part of the DRS, consumers will pay a 20p deposit as part of the purchase price of a drink in an eligible single-use container and get the deposit back when they return empty drinks bottles and cans via a return point.

Accolade's move further cemented the company's broader sustainability agenda, it said.

“Sustainability is a core focus for us, our customers and consumers and we are proud to take a leading role within the industry by supporting the development of Scotland’s DRS,” said Caroline Thompson-Hill, MD for Europe, Accolade Wines.

“It’s important that everyone plays their part, and we encourage all drinkers to recycle their cans and bottles wherever possible, including via the new DRS when it officially launches in Scotland.

“While there’s still a significant amount of work to do to get the scheme up and running, it will be particularly important to work on a standardised system for container recycling across the UK in the coming months and years,” she said.

Scotland will be the first part of the UK to introduce a DRS for drinks containers. While parts of the scheme are yet to be finalised - such as the alignment with schemes planned for the other devolved nations - the primary objectives of the scheme are to increase the number of drinks containers that are recycled, reduce littering, and help protect the environment for future generations.

Over the coming months, beverage producers, retailers and other industry stakeholders will support the new scheme administrator of the DRS to “ensure the scheme is developed in a way that works for consumers, industry and the environment”, according to Accolade.

In addition to achieving carbon neutral status, last year Accolade launched ‘flat' recycled PET plastic bottles across a number of its brands as part of its sustainability strategy.