Buy the Coffee Cup in Vienna, Return it in Munich

The introduction of reusable cups, mugs, and tableware with a deposit system for take-away or delivery of meals is progressing slowly. Suppliers in Germany are not having an easy time getting to market. Recup from Munich achieved a good position and has now also launched a reusable system for to-go cups in Austria.

Counter employee hands recup cup to customer. — Bakeries are also among Recup's partners.

At the beginning of 2023, after lengthy negotiations and legal reviews, the regulation for mandatory reusable containers came into force in Germany. Its implementation is proceeding at a slow pace. Restaurants, delivery services, snack bars, and bakeries with an area of more than 80 square meters must offer reusable containers for drinks or takeaway food. Deposit systems that allow customers to return crockery throughout Germany or at least in their region are rare.

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The two Recup founders Fabian Eckert (r.) and Florian Pachaly with recup containers. — Recup founders: The two Recup founders Fabian Eckert (right) and Florian Pachaly launched the first test procedure for a deposit system in 2016.

Fabian Eckert and Florian Pachaly took the plunge back in 2016, long before the law was introduced, and launched Recup in Rosenheim as a test procedure for takeaway containers plus deposit. Over time, the two company founders succeeded in establishing the desired nationwide deposit system, and today around 20,000 partner companies cooperate with Recup.

These include cafés and restaurants as well as retail chains such as Alnatura, Bio Company, King, Denn’s Biomärkte and IKEA as well as Aramark and Sodexo from the catering sector, Burger King, Aral, and Shell.

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Launch in Austria

This spring, Recup took the next step and launched in Austria in April. The first partners were the Denn’s Biomärkte in Vienna, followed by Le Crobag. After operating a deposit system in Germany for seven years, Fabian Eckert is convinced that a nationwide delivery and return network works. “We firmly believe that Austria is ready for a change in the area of to-go packaging.” The first six months after the launch of the system were characterized by great openness for reusable packaging and the topic of waste avoidance, is the interim conclusion of International Sales Manager Johannes Weih. However, they also noticed a percievable reluctance to implement such a system. “We are now slowly but surely seeing more and more demand from rural regions near Germany, such as Salzburg and Tyrol, as well as from Vienna.”

The deposit and return system covers both countries. “You can get on the train in Vienna in the morning with a coffee in your Recup and return it in Munich,” says Weih.

Woman holding Recup-Bowl with lid with both hands. — The meals in the rebowls are protected with a lid.

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After the initial cooperation with big chain gastronomies, the aim is now to win over individual restaurants and small chains as partners. At the same time, talks are continuing with major partners from the retail, catering, and trade sectors. The focus here is on companies with positive experiences from Germany, Weih says of the target group. However, the situations in the two countries differ, as many catering businesses in Austria are not obliged to provide reusable products. “In Austria, to date there is no political pressure to offer reusable packaging.” However, the lower awareness of Recup in the Alpine republic also plays a role. The focus is now on establishing the system; the launch in other countries and the date for this are completely open.

Those responsible at Recup are also focusing on greater harmonization in both countries, but preferably directly at EU level. The developments surrounding the PPWR are showing positive signs for this, but the single-use industry has significantly weakened the regulation with strong lobbying pressure, they say “However, the negotiated compromise, which includes the promotion of reusable packaging, packaging bans, and recyclate use quotas, is an important step towards waste prevention,” says Weih. The binding EU-wide waste prevention targets and reusable quotas represent a milestone for him.

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Buy the Coffee Cup in Vienna, Return it in Munich

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Launch in Austria

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Save the Date

Launch in Austria

Save the Date