Singapore will roll out a financial support programme to help beverage producers adjust to the upcoming Beverage Container Return Scheme (BCRS), as authorities seek to boost recycling rates while easing the cost burden on smaller producers and importers.
The National Environment Agency (NEA) said it will introduce a BCRS Producer Transition Grant, offering up to S$2,500 (US$1,950) to each registered producer.
The grant is intended to help companies manage transition costs associated with complying with the new extended producer responsibility (EPR) framework, which requires producers to take greater responsibility for the collection and recycling of beverage containers.
The BCRS has been positioned as a way to raise recycling rates for drink containers and reduce the volume of waste sent for incineration.
Under the scheme, producers will collectively fund and operate a deposit return system that incentivises consumers to return empty beverage containers for recycling. Similar systems are already in place in parts of Europe and Australia, where they have been credited with significantly increasing container recovery rates.
Acknowledging that the scheme will affect producers differently, authorities said the grant is aimed particularly at smaller companies and importers that may face higher logistical and administrative hurdles.
“Producers are taking collective responsibility for recycling their containers. But we also appreciate that the impact of the scheme varies across producers, depending on their size and business model,” said Dr Janil Puthucheary, senior minister of state at MSE and the Ministry of Education, in a social media update on Tuesday.
Speaking at an event on Tuesday evening, Puthucheary said that the scheme would not be subject to any further delays and would go live as planned on 1 April. The scheme has been repeatedly postponed – initially planned for 2022, then pushed to 2024 and 2025 – with industry-watchers accusing producers of delay tactics.
The timeline for the transition period for the scheme was recently extended from three to six months, following concerns from beverage producers that they would struggle to clear existing stock and comply with new labelling requirements.
Beverage firms have also voiced frustration over a lack of transparency, shifting timelines, technical changes and what they describe as gaps in communication from BCRS Ltd, the scheme operator formed by Coca-Cola, F&N Foods and Pokka, Singapore’s largest beverage producers.
Security fee, unredeemed deposits and transition period concerns
Lim Jialiang, founder of beer importer and distributor Watering Hole, told Eco-Business that while the grant would go some way to offsetting costs, it may not be enough to cover two elements of the scheme that are stretching the margins of some producers – a security deposit for importers and unredeemed deposits.
“Let’s say our overall return rate is 60 per cent. What happens to that 40 per cent of deposits?” he said.
Lim also pointed out that producers using international recycling barcodes must pay a security fee, which is billed as a safeguard against fraud, with a benchmark fee of around S$28,000 (US$21,820) for selling 100,000 containers.
This will principally affect parallel importers such as Tian Ma and Valuedollar, which import cheaper products from overseas and resell them locally. Lim estimates that BCRS could cost Tian Ma approximately S$40,000 (US$31,150) per month in security fees.
BCRS has said that the security fee is fully refundable and can also be provided in the form of a banker’s guarantee.
Other costs include a one-time registration fee of $$500 (US$390), with an additional $5 (US$3.90) for each product registered.
Lim commented that even though the transition period for producers has been extended, it is still short and, combined with concerns over transparency, could mean that “we will probably still be working through issues through to October,” six months after the scheme has gone live.
Other industry-watchers are concerned about a lack of transparency over where the collected containers will be recycled. In response to a question about this, NEA said BCRS Ltd would share more about the plans for recycling when ready.
Beverage containers make up a significant share of household recyclables in Singapore but are often contaminated or incorrectly disposed of, reducing recycling efficiency. Singapore has been tightening waste reduction and recycling policies as it grapples with limited landfill space and rising consumption.
News of the BCRS grant comes three months after a parliamentary inquiry into a container refund scheme in Queensland, Australia revealed claims of bullying, conflict of interest and governance failures.
A parliamentary committee report found that the scheme’s coordinating body, Container Exchange Limited (COEX), is “dominated” by beverage firms Coca-Cola and Lion, which are represented on its board. Submissions to the inquiry alleged the companies have a financial incentive to limit recycling volumes, as the industry-funded “scheme fee” they pay rises with the number of containers returned.
The committee said the governance model effectively handed monopoly control to two large corporations, which also awarded a key contract to their own joint venture. Whistleblowers described bullying, harassment and intimidation by COEX staff, as well as alleged market manipulation that disadvantaged existing depot operators.
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