Overview

• Municipal utilities and waste services report a rise in Mehrweg glass bottles left in public spaces, with Hamburg citing an increase especially after festivals and weekends.
• Many abandoned bottles are dirty or damaged and are burned in waste-to-energy plants rather than returned to the reuse cycle.
• The VKU urges the beverage industry to raise bottle and crate deposits and says politicians should set a minimum if no agreement emerges.
• The current 8‑cent deposit for standard glass beer bottles is industry-set rather than statutory, unlike the 25‑cent deposit on single-use containers.
• Positions diverge as Fritz-Kola and small-brewer groups back 20–25 cents per bottle, while major associations including the Deutscher Brauer-Bund and mineral water and wholesalers’ groups oppose changes, noting costs, logistics and Austria’s recent move to 20 cents as a reference point.