“Recycling refund will hike beer price“. Basically, drink giants like Foster’s Group, Lion Nathan and Coca-Cola are playing a game with consumers saying that the price per drink will go up if a national container recycling scheme is approved next week at the National Environment Protection Council meeting.
Well, guess what? Of course the price will go up. I and many other millions of ordinary Australians would expect the price per container to go up by the proposed 10 cent refund. We are not freaking stupid you know Mr Drink Giants! Heaven forbid that the price of the amber nectar will go up. All drinks will rise in price. I wouldn’t expect the manufacturer to absorb the increase because when a similar scheme was introduced in South Australia as I described in this post, “Wanted – A Container Deposit Scheme“, the price increased by the 5 cent levy as indicated by the government of the time. I certainly don’t remember any scaremongering though, but mind you, as a kid at the time, I thought that it was a fantastic idea that kept me in pocket money!
To put the icing on the cake, today I read this story.
“Dirty tactics suspected in container recycling battle“. Once again, quite a simple observation that anyone would have realised from reading the first article. Vested interests only thinking about their next quarterly profit figures and not the future of the planet and its dwindling resources.
Have I ever told you that vested interests irritate me! Shame, shame, shame on you Coca-Cola, Fosters, and Lion Nathan. People are addicted to your products anyway, so you needn’t fear the 10 cent levy. You should be embracing it, and not the other way around. Clowns!
Well that is my 10 cents worth anyway!
Gavin – all I can say is that Coca-Cola fought the bottle return fee here in the US. They wanted if the fee was going to be approved for the unclaimed deposits after a certain period of time to become part of the Company’s funds. However this would mean putting some sort of tracking on the deposits to know how old they were etc.
Recently in the US there was legislation (maybe just here in NY) to add the deposit to water bottles, it was approved and then put on hold. The idea was to include all plastic and aluminum beverage containers (not just soda, and beer which is currently returnable).
I honestly couldn’t say if it has been put in place or is still on hold, because I don’t buy these products. I honestly don’t think the container deposit has hurt anyone. They return the bottles and get the money back. Its no different than when we used to get our glass soda bottles from a beverage company. You paid a deposit on each case of bottles and the wooden case. If you brought them back the money was credited, if you didn’t you paid the deposit again.
The result I see is people collecting the tossed bottles and returning them. Hey good money for those individuals (and they are working for it) and good for the environment.
I do however had to say a good number of people don’t find the $.05 or $.10 (glass) refund to be worth it and many are tossed (not even recycle bin, just trashed) because it has become part of the cost.
Good Luck in getting it through. I would like to see it higher, just to make it worth it to return them. I would also like to see us add the mandatory scrap food composting that exists in SF and another large city here in the US.
Keep lobbying for the change.
Gavin, I have heard of several people here in Sth. Oz. who have made a fortune by riding their bicycle around the streets of Adelaide, picking up any empty cans.
Not only have they made enough to purchase a rental property, they have also improved their health with the exercise, not to mention the extra benefit of keeping the streets clear of litter. Some have a small trailer attached to the bike to carry the load !!
Yet they don’t scaremonger when they’re the ones deciding to put the price up to improve their bottom line… funny that 😛
I have also seen with my eyes this kind of incidents occurring in front of me. People have become so much addicted to it and therefore it is very difficult to leave it so early. Rehabilitation is required for it.