Over a Billion Bottles Already Returned in Hungary

More than a billion plastic bottles, cans and glass bottles have been returned in Hungary in the past six months, with the number of daily returns exceeding 10 million on several days between Christmas and New Year, beating the previous record of 8 million in August, MOHU, the company responsible for the recycling of such packaging materials has told MTI.

Consumers in Budapest have returned more than 180 million beverage containers since the mandatory return system went live in the summer of 2024 – the most active district in this respect was the 11th. After the capital, most such packaging were returned in the cities of Debrecen, Szeged and Miskolc.

The most popular return day is Saturday, and those who want to avoid the heavier traffic should return on Tuesday or Wednesday, although the number of returns is usually over 4 million nationwide even on these days, MOHU said.

There are 4,500 points nationwide where beverage containers can be redeemed, of which about 1,500 are handled by staff. MOHU aims to further increase the number of redemption points in the future, thus supporting the increase in the redemption rate, they stressed.

The statement recalled that iIn Hungary, shops larger than 400 square meters were required to join the redemption scheme. The day-to-day operation, cleaning of the vending machines, keeping their environment tidy and emptying of full machines is the responsibility of the shops, so MOHU pays a handling fee to the shops for each bottle returned.

Shop vouchers continue to be the most popular method of refund among consumers, with MOHU refunding more than HUF 40 billion, so far. Uniquely in Europe, the return fee can also be sent directly to a bank account, with around 16% of consumers using this option, they said.

The HUF 50 per bottle can also be donated to charity, with more than HUF 118 million raised so far for children's hospitals.

The European Union has set a target of 90% recycling rate for PET beverage packaging by 2029. It is estimated that more than 3 billion beverage containers are sold in Hungary every year. In the past, only 30% of beverage packaging could be recycled, the company said.

The return system, which is in force in a growing number of EU countries, came into force in Hungary from January 2024, but producers have been given a grace period until 30 June to market products without a deposit fee.