A little process keeps repeating itself across Aarhus. A coffee is purchased, savoured, a cup is used, and then returned rather than thrown. Since January 2024, Denmark's second-largest city has operated a reusable cup deposit scheme to reduce disposable waste. The concept is straightforward and not uncommon, but the outcomes have been hard to ignore. Single-use drink cups are typically used for around 15 minutes before being thrown, with less than 2% recycled globally. Aarhus opted to interfere at that specific point. The city's trial focuses on takeaway beverages, everyday behaviours, and minor financial adjustments rather than prohibitions or punishments. Early data suggests that it is changing how people regard packaging in public places.
Aarhus in Denmark is paying people to bring coffee cups back
Under the scheme, customers pay about 75 cents extra when buying a drink in a reusable cup. After use, the cup can be returned to one of the city’s deposit stations. Scanning a card triggers an automatic refund. The system now records a return rate of 88 per cent, with almost 900,000 cups returned since launch.
Waste data helped drive the project forward
Local waste analysis showed that nearly half of all waste in Aarhus came from food and drink packaging. That figure shaped the city’s priorities. A visible shift came during the Aarhus Festuge festival, where only reusable cups were used. Around 100,000 cups were recovered during the event, enough to fill more than a thousand standard bins.
Design choices reduce misuse and improve recycling
The cups are made from reusable polypropylene and come in different sizes for hot drinks, cold drinks and iced beverages. Each cup carries a unique code, allowing only one deposit refund. Once returned, cups are washed and put back into circulation, keeping the loop contained.
Local cafes support the return system
The city worked with 45 local cafes to introduce reusable cups alongside disposable options. At present, 22 deposit stations are placed around central areas. QR codes on the cups guide users to the nearest return point.
Results appear in everyday waste checks
During a waste audit over Whitsun in May 2024, two tonnes of rubbish were examined. Only four reusable cups were found. The system is run in partnership with Norwegian waste company TOMRA and the Aarhus municipality.
The project moves ahead of upcoming European packaging rules and supports Denmark’s target to cut plastic takeaway packaging by half in 2026. The next step may include bowls and pizza boxes. For now, the cups keep circulating, quietly changing the bins they never reach.
