A “significant intervention” from the Scottish Government will reduce the costs involved with the deposit return scheme, the organisation implementing the initiative has insisted.
Circularity Scotland chief executive David Harris also said minister Lorna Salter is “considering industry’s concerns” about the scheme – which is due to come into force next August.
It will see shoppers pay a 20p deposit any time they buy a drink in a can or bottle. However, industry leaders warned charges associated with the scheme could mean consumers having to pay as much as 30p more.
More than 500 leading figures from businesses across the food, drink and hospitality sector signed a letter to Slater, the circular economy minister, calling for the deposit return scheme to be paused so it can be revised.
Blair Bowman, the whisky consultant and broker responsible for the letter, warned some smaller drinks firms might stop selling their products in Scotland because of the additional costs and paperwork.
He said: “I’ve already had phone calls with producers here who are heartbroken that they are actually considering stopping selling their products in Scotland, their home market, because of this system.”
But Circularity Scotland has now said new guidance will “significantly reduce the cost of the scheme for industry and consumers”.
Other changes mean it will be able to assist retailers in applying for exemptions, help to establish shared return points for used containers, and will work to ensure there are no “black spots” for consumers returning their empty bottles and cans.
More information is to be provided to producers in the coming weeks, but Harris said: “We warmly welcome this significant intervention from the Scottish Government.
“We have been working closely with the minister and her team, as well as Zero Waste Scotland, to agree an approach and this new guidance will help industry to establish an accessible and inclusive network of return points across Scotland in the most effective and cost-efficient way.
“We also welcome the minister’s indication that she is considering industry’s concerns around online take-back and her commitment to provide further detail on this in the coming weeks.
“With just under a year to go until DRS is introduced, these developments are just one element of how we are actively working with industry, government and all stakeholders to deliver a scheme that will work for Scotland, will transform how we recycle in this country and will help preserve our environment for generations to come.”
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