Drinks producers urge Sunak to implement DRS in open letter

An open letter signed by Coca-Cola, PepsiCo and many more urges Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to implement a deposit return scheme (DRS) to increase recycling rates.

UK-based environmental charity Keep Britain Tidy organised the letter, which was signed by major soft drinks producers including Coca-Cola, PepsiCo and Suntory, the British Soft Drinks Association, as well as environmental organisations such as WWF, Surfers Against Sewage and the Marine Conservation Society and trade body the Federation of Independent Retailers.

The open letter voices the signatories’ “unwavering support” for the UK Government’s commitment to DRS “in light of unsupported reports of its costs”. It also reiterates they believe the scheme should be aligned across all nations in terms of deposit levels, timeline, scope and fees.