Singapore has extended the transition period for its upcoming drink container deposit scheme to six months, following concerns from beverage producers that they would struggle to clear existing stock and comply with new labelling requirements in time.
Announcing the move in a post on Facebook on 3 January, senior minister of state for sustainability and the environment Dr Janil Puthucheary said the Beverage Container Return Scheme (BCRS) will still begin on 1 April 2026, but companies will now have until 30 September 2026 to sell beverages that do not carry the deposit mark.
The scheme – Singapore’s flagship “polluter pays” policy to raise recycling rates – will place a S$0.10 (US$0.07) refundable deposit on plastic bottles and metal cans, which consumers can reclaim by returning empty containers to reverse vending machines (RVMs) across the island.
“We’ve heard clearly that the original three-month transition may not be enough,” Puthucheary said, adding that the government has worked with scheme operator BCRS Ltd and industry groups to ensure rollout remains “practical and smooth”.
Consumers can expect shelves to carry a mix of deposit and non-deposit containers during the transition, he said, with most marked products appearing closer to the latter part of the period.
Singapore’s beverage container recycling logo. Image: BCRS
The minister said more public information will be released in the coming weeks, including how to identify the BCRS mark and where to return eligible containers. Outreach to producers, retailers and food-and-beverage outlets will also be intensified.
Deposit scheme meets industry and consumer friction
The BCRS – Singapore’s first extended producer responsibility (EPR) framework for beverage packaging – is designed to raise collection rates and extend the life of Semakau Landfill, which is projected to reach capacity within a decade.
Yet beverage firms have voiced frustration over shifting timelines, technical changes and what they describe as gaps in communication from BCRS Ltd, the non-profit operator formed by Coca-Cola Singapore, F&N Foods and Pokka.
Some producers say uncertainty over penalties, product-registration deadlines and barcode rules have complicated production planning and inventory management. Import-heavy businesses have warned that relabelling thousands of items – or manually stickering products – could be costly and disruptive.
Lim Jialiang, founder of beer importer and distributor Watering Hole, said in November that a three-month sell-through window was unrealistic, and that while the extension to six months provides relief, smaller distributors will be hit hard by fees and administration and compliance requirements that may still squeeze margins.
In response to Puthucheary’s post, some consumers expressed concern in social media that the scheme would be an inconvenience to retailers and consumers. Others worried that there would be insufficient RVMs to cater for demand and that the system would strain energy resources rather than save on packaging.
Labels, barcodes and recycling ambitions
Under the scheme, beverages carrying the 10-cent deposit must feature a dedicated BCRS mark and a barcode that allows machines and retailers to differentiate between eligible and non-eligible products – particularly during the transition period.
BCRS Ltd has clarified that international barcodes will be accepted, but companies will need to pay a refundable security fee. Producers are encouraged to adopt Singapore-specific barcodes to reduce the risk of unregistered containers being returned for refunds.
Questions have also been raised about the rollout of roughly 1,000 reverse vending machines, which will anchor the collection system. Industry players say certainty on locations and specifications is critical for logistics planning. The operator has said tenders have been awarded, and that products meeting current published labelling rules will be recognised by the scheme. The winner of the RVM vendor tender has yet to be revealed.
The transition period extension is the latest timing change to affect Singapore’s deposit return scheme. It was initially planned for 2022, then pushed to 2024 and 2025 – with industry-watchers accusing producers of slow-walking the process.
Puthucheary said the initiative was a “significant step towards Singapore’s circular economy goals”, adding that “every container returned makes a difference”.
BCRS is targeting a 60 per cent return rate in 2026, rising to 80 per cent by 2029. Experts have told Eco-Business that reaching these levels will depend not only on a dense network of return points but also on consumer education, transparent reporting of collection data, and fair handling of fees for retailers.
The BCRS currently covers only plastic and metal beverage containers. Cartons, glass bottles and freshly-prepared drinks remain outside the system – a narrower scope than in many advanced economies with EPR schemes, where glass bottles and drink cartons are included in the remit. The National Environment Agency, Singapore’s lead department for waste management, has signalled that the scope could be expanded later.
Singapore is aiming to match the success of countries where deposit systems have become central to improving recycling rates. The city-state’s domestic recycling rate plunged to a record low earlier this year, at 11 per cent, well below its targeted 30 per cent by 2030.
