Exchange for Change (EFC) has announced the new fixed price per material type for supplier contributions that fund the Return and Earn NSW container deposit scheme, effective for six months for invoices issued from August 2022.
The current weighted average price per eligible drink container beverage suppliers put into circulation in NSW for the six-month period from February to July 2022 is 10.61c (excluding GST). From August 2022, the new weighted average price (excluding GST) per eligible container will be 11.71c.
Danielle Smalley, CEO of Exchange for Change, said six-month pricing was set because of ongoing uncertainty.
“We understand pricing certainty and stability is important to suppliers and we aim to return to a 12-month fixed price by material type once economic conditions become more predictable,” she said.
“The NSW scheme operates on a cost-recovery basis and the current pricing, announced last October, reflected the drop in redemptions.
“Today however, return rates are starting to recover. The new weighted average price has increased by 1c to ensure sufficient funds to meet forecast scheme costs during the pricing period.”
EFC said the pricing for invoices issued from August 2022 to January 2023 was developed following extensive modelling which reviewed more than four years of scheme supply and redemption trend data, consultation with the beverage industry, and consumer research to understand community redemption behaviour.
Meanwhile EFC said it will hold pricing for an additional six months in the ACT.
Smalley said: “We hope today’s announcement of no change to the current supplier contribution pricing for the ACT scheme will help the beverage industry to maintain their own pricing stability in what is still an uncertain economic environment.
“Our aim remains to introduce a 12-month fixed price by material type once conditions are more predictable.
“The ACT Container Deposit Scheme continues to go from strength to strength with 63 per cent of ACT residents having participated, resulting in more than 300 million drink containers returned for recycling since it launched in June 2018.
“The ACT scheme also has one of the highest redemption rates in the country, with the latest 12-month rolling redemption rate 75 per cent. That’s three in every four drink containers supplied into ACT being redeemed through the scheme.”