Musgrave’s SuperValu and Centra chains have revealed that over 125 million single-use containers have been returned through their Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) within its first eight months, becoming the first retailers in Ireland to reach this milestone.
The achievement highlights a significant shift in the country’s recycling habits, with SuperValu and Centra seeing a surge in public engagement in recent months. More than 91 million containers have been returned since June alone, resulting in a return rate of over 95% for that period.
Stores in Dublin, Cork, Meath, Galway, and Kildare have seen the highest volume of returns within the SuperValu and Centra store network.
Launching in February this year, SuperValu and Centra invested €28m in Reverse Vending Machines across their store networks. There are now 686 machines in 549 stores across all 26 counties in Ireland, the largest deployment by any retailer.
SuperValu and Centra noted they saw growing interaction with their Reverse Vending Machines as the year progressed, with a number of stores ordering larger and additional machines to facilitate demand. According to both retailers, consumer behaviour indicates strong adoption of the scheme, with weekends being the busiest period for recycling. In recent months, consumers are bringing a higher volume of returns at once, averaging 24 containers per visit.
Luke Hanlon, Managing Director of SuperValu and Centra, commented: “As a result of offering the largest number of Reverse Vending Machines in convenient locations across every county in Ireland, we are delighted to see such a high level of interaction from our customers with the Deposit Return Scheme in our stores, with over 125 million containers returned in total since its introduction in February. This is a testament to our loyal customers embracing the scheme which benefits not only them, but also the wider environment.
“Our data indicates that since June over 95% of eligible cans and bottles we sell have been returned through our RVM machines nationwide. This is a significant increase in the average nationwide recycle rate for these items, which was estimated at 60%-70% before the scheme’s introduction.”
He added: “Customers are increasingly sustainability-focused and it’s essential that as community retailers, SuperValu and Centra are able to empower more eco-friendly recycling habits. This demonstrates the positive benefits of our ‘Local Action Global Impact’ initiative, showing that small, community-based efforts can contribute to the broader fight against environmental challenges.”
