Deposit-free cans in Germany
for the ready-to-drink coffee drinks market. The new coffee cans
are made of 100 per cent recyclable steel, and are being
distributed by convenience stores. Customers do not have to pay a
deposit for the cans.
This is an important development. Drinks manufacturers have been hit hard by the country's controversial recycling system, which has been blamed for a dramatic loss of business in the country. The system, which requires customers to pay a deposit on cans and bottles used only once, has meant that capacity in Germany's beverage can market has been halved.
But drinks manufacturer Münsterland hopes that the new coffee cans will revive the popularity of canned beverages in Germany. The two brands, Eis-cafe and Eis-choc, are being packaged in a 25cl slimline can. This is the first time that Münsterland has marketed one of its products in a can.
The slimline can features a new type of base coat. Ball Packaging Europe is currently the sole supplier of this base coat, which contains a high concentration of reflecting pigments to give the steel can a brighter and more brilliant appearance.
The quantity and composition of the varnish and reflecting pigments can be varied to meet the specific requirements of various customer designs.
Packaging groups will be looking anxiously at the success of the cans. The German market for cans has fallen from 7.5 billion units to 3.5 billion in the space of a year.
"We lost 1.5 billion cans in Germany last year, and this impacted our profit by £18 million," said Per Erlandsson, group communications director for one can maker, Rexam, recently. "The recycling scheme in Germany has created chaos, and has hit cans more than any other form of packaging."
Germany's recycling scheme was introduced on 1 January 2003. It stipulates that one-way containers must be returned for a deposit of between 25 and 50 cents. This is part of the country's strategy to achieve EU recycling targets, something that Germany is obliged to reach.
