Container deposit scheme will raise prices and cost jobs

The Australian Beverages Council has expressed concern that environmental groups are spruiking no price increases related to a proposed container deposit scheme.

“It is pure fallacy for various environmental groups to be suggesting the price of a can or bottle of drink won’t rise under a container deposit scheme. This is simply not the case and as manufacturers of the product with an intimate knowledge of the supply chain and what it costs to produce a can or bottle of drink, members both large and small tell me the price has to rise” said the Beverages Council’s CEO, Mr Geoff Parker.

“This price rise will impact all manufacturers, from the very large to the very small. What concerns me is that for the small manufacturers, many situated in regional towns and producing some iconic Australian brands, this price rise they’ll have to pass on is their existing margins. In an already tight market this will mean job losses and some plants will be forced to close. We don’t need environmental groups suggesting otherwise - this is a fact.

“As a result of the price rise, the container deposit scheme will be a tax on every can or bottle of drink purchased. It is estimated this drink tax will add an additional $300 to the annual shop for households at a time when they’re already doing it tough. Ironically, families are already recycling their bottles and cans at home and pay for this through their council rates. The drink container tax is a double hit for families and just not fair.

“The industry supports efforts to increase recycling and reduce litter. But applying a 1970’s solution to a 2013 problem is absurd. The NSW Environment Minister knows the plight of small manufacturers if a container deposit scheme was introduced and is aware of cheaper more effective framework for achieving what we all want, without any cost to consumers” Mr Parker concluded.

Source: Australian Beverages Council Ltd, 22 May 2013