A widespread adoption of refill solutions could be a very effective way to fight single use plastic packaging, and the negative impact brands have on the environment. On average each european generates almost 180kg of packaging waste each year, much of this is plastic. Without action, we’ll see a 46% increase for plastic packaging waste in 2030. Refill can help us keep fewer materials and products in circulation for much longer. This means less waste, but also that we can consume less natural resources, within the limits of planet earth.

“The reuse revolution is the answer to the plastic crisis” – Graham Forbes, Greenpeace

It’s not just NGOs like Greenpeace and urban, left-leaning environmentally consious milennials that think refill is a good idea. A range of powerful organizations and governmental bodies, on a mission to put an end to unsustainable packaging practices, are highlighting refill as key in the effort to minimize the environmental impact of packaging. So what’s happening in practice?

EU is still leading the way

In Brussels, a proposal is being discussed that can set mandatory, EU-wide objectives for companies to ensure that portions of their product offerings are available in reusable or refillable packaging. The focus is on sectors where this approach is most practical. By 2030, it is stipulated that 20% of cold and hot beverages must be dispensed into containers integrated within a reuse system or be compatible with customers using their own refillable containers. For instance, beer retailers are expected to have 10% of their products available in refillable containers by 2030, rising to 25% by 2040. Regarding take-away meals from restaurants, the targets are set at 10% in 2030 and 40% in 2040. Furthermore, the proposal requires that 10% of e-commerce packaging designed for transport must be reusable by 2030, with a increase to 50% by 2040.

There will also be some degree of standardization applied to reusable packaging formats, such as drinking bottles, along with design guidelines regarding the design of reuse and refill systems, drawing from established best practices.

Ambitous nations fight waste with refill

Some countries are even more ambitous than the EU. France already implemented a reuse packaging target law, which requires 10% of packaging to be reuseable by 2026. An example of this, is that it forced all 1,545 McDonalds restaurants in France to embrace a full reuse system for dine-in. They have also set national targets for 2025, highlighting that 50% of the reduction in single use packaging will be obtained thorugh reuse solutions. Just in 2021 and 2022, the french state spent 40 million euro on reuse investments and incentives.

Austria have implemented binding and enforeable reuse targets in their Waste Management Act by demanding a beverage reuse quota of 25% by 2025. In practice, this means supermarkets must provide at least 15% of beer and water in reuseable packaging, and 10% reuse packaging quota for products like soda, juice and milk. Countries like Portugal, Romania India, Chile and Spain all have implemented similar laws.

If we speculate a bit, this wave of refill and reuse legislation and targets could take the market penetration of refill close to 8% towards 2032. At least according to one of the models in McKinseys recent report on the key enablers to scaling Reuseable Packaging. Add the fact that a whopping 69% of consumers expressing their willingness to embrace refill and reuse, there’s immense growth potential.

Refill is a sustainable business opportunity

Refill presents a compelling business opportunity on several fronts. Firstly, it encourages long-term customer loyalty and additional sales through product platforming. Secondly, it leverages data gathering, IoT, and traceability to enhance food safety and stimulate purchases.

The ability to customize refilled content to user preferences and achieve shorter turnaround times further sweetens the deal. Moreover, adopting refill practices allows brands to position themselves as leaders in sustainability, aligning with consumer preferences, as reuse packaging is deemed the most eco-friendly choice.

“Food retailers can save between $40,000 and $170,000 for every one million units of pre-packed product they convert to self-dispensing bulk systems. Early adopters report up to 90% cost reduction in shipping” –WRAP report, 2021

Refill barriers for businesses

For consumers, the the biggest barrier against adopting refill is managing to find avaliable refill options. According to Innova Market Insights, consumers view refill as the most environmentally sustainable packaging model. So why are businesses lagging?

According to our research and report-reading, the biggest challenges are:

1. Keeping cost at par or lower than current solution

2. Meeting consumers expectation on convenience

3. Reverse logistics, sorting and sanitation for hygiene

4. Creating a scaleable ecosystem of containers that balance standardization and harmonization for easy logistics with customizability, branding and communication

These are big challenges. But looking at the rate of legislative change and big expectations from consumers, we think it’s crucial to start adapting fast.

Low hanging fruit

Some sectors and categories may have a shorter way to refill profitability than others. Here’s our prediciton of product categories that are going to proliferate as early adopters on the refill-reuse market:

1. Detergents and home care. Detergent and soap are mostly water. That means paying a premium for shipping water around. That’s why we think household cleaning products are ripe for a refill revolution. Unlike complex formulas found in items like shampoo and conditioner, many cleaners can be effortlessly concentrated and mixed with water, forming the majority of conventional cleaning solutions. Case in point: Laundry tablets

2. Deoderants and similar personal care products. Consumers are pretty loyal to their deoderant brand, and most of the packaging is not the content, but functional to apply the content correctly. Case in point: Wild refill deoderant cartridges

3. Grocery delivery services. Some grocery delivery companies already have tackled two of the biggest barriers to reuse and refill: Consumer expectations of convenience, and creating robust reverse logistics. Case in point: Wally https://thewallyshop.co/ and The Rounds https://www.therounds.co/

4. Take-out food. The concept of reusable take-out food containers within the food service industry is still in its early stages, yet it holds significant potential for adoption in major urban centers. Case in point: Evig sirkel (in norwegian)

5. In-store packaged food. Dry foods and low to no-barrier food and shelf stable items set fewer demands for the packaging to keep fresh. We’ve also seen bulk stores proliferate worldwide for a few years already, letting happy eco-conscious customers fill their own boxes and jars in-store. Case in point: Bulk shopping

Goods' take on refill sustainability

At Goods, we’re enthusiastic about refill, (just check out our self-initiated exploration of the industrial design process of creating refillable hand cream packaging!) and think it’s a fantastic opportunity for many sectors and brands. But we’re not unequivocally pushing refill in all projects.

Before going all in on new solutions, materials or production methods, it’s always important to consider the whole life cycles, systems and value chain. How will adopting refill affect food waste? Or food safety, contamination and allergies, or pharmaceuticals? Water use can also be an issue. Life Cycle Assesments performed by Ramboll on the environmental impact of reuse-plastic versus paper-based single use packaging for fast food restaurants, showed that re-use and refill packaging would have a much higher freshwater consumption than single use items. Packaging and containers need to be clean, after all. In a country with abundant freshwater and a green energy mix, this is not a problem. But with droughts increasing globally, this will be a challenge.

Acting on sustainability is always a balancing act, but all in all, there is so much single use plastics streams that can be stopped with refill. We believe refill and reuse is worth exploring, building and learning as much as we can. When looking at what’s happening in the legislative space, it seems like it would be stupid not to. FMCG companies and consumer brands don’t just need a strategy for refill and how it will play a part of their packaging portfolio, but need to put the consumer in center and use design craft and methodology to facilitate green change.

If you want to discuss a refill project, or know more, please don’t hesitate to contact our Managing Director Camilla Annie Martinussen at camilla@goods.no