Coca-Cola: A world without waste

A COMMON VISION.

Every hour, around 300,000 bottles leave the Coca-Cola HBC Austria plant in the east of the country. Consumers use the collection scheme provided by ARA, among others, to dispose of the PET bottles placed on the market. Austria is a top performer in PET bottle recycling: Three out of four PET bottles are collected separately, enabling high-quality recycling.

In 2007, Coca-Cola HBC Austria launched a state-of-the-art PET-to-PET recycling plant together with four other Austrian beverage producers. In 2021, the plant recycled more than 27,300 tonnes of PET material.

A valuable resource for industry

PET stands for polyethylene terephthalate. It is a top-quality packaging material that meets or exceeds the highest food industry standards – which makes it all the more important that we use it for as long as possible. Every PET bottle must ultimately be recycled, so it can be reprocessed and become a valuable secondary raw material. This helps protect the environment and conserve natural resources. The PET-to-PET recycling plant is a showcase of how we can embrace circularity.

For a world without waste

As part of their “World Without Waste” vision, Coca-Cola aims to collect and recycle one bottle or can (PET, glass and aluminium) for every one they sell by 2030. Only the best possible collection scheme will allow them to reach this goal. In 2019, Coca-Cola HBC Austria achieved a milestone on the way to a “World Without Waste” with the launch of the Römerquelle mineral water portfolio in bottles made of 100 % recycled PET. The company aims to increase both the share of rPET in its other brands and the share of products available in reusable bottles over the coming years.