CIRCULAR ECONOMY
SBF GB & I’ S IRISH DRS WHITEPAPER
Ahead of Ireland’ s DRS launch, SBF GB & I worked alongside the Irish Government to help develop an industry-led scheme, with retailers and suppliers sharing expertise.
Using its learnings, the company published a study to provide early insight and reassurance on how businesses can embrace the introduction of DRS.
Experts from SBF GB & I visited retailers to discover how the scheme was introduced and how any problems were ironed out.
These findings moved beyond theory and towards lived experience, with the aim of helping policymakers and retailers prepare for behavioural change rather than hypothetical scenarios.
Fraser says:“ Our research into the shopper reaction to Deposit Return Schemes shows that behaviour can be split into three distinct phases: surprise, review and reset.
“ Within seven weeks in our controlled study, redemption rates reached 88 %, demonstrating how quickly new routines can form.
“ The key insight is that while there is initial disruption, habits stabilise rapidly and retailers who communicate clearly and plan effectively can turn that transition into a commercial opportunity.”
This enabled the Irish Government to appoint a capable scheme administrator in a timely manner, who was then accountable for delivering the scheme and key aspects of it, including the return handling fee and management of its contracts with suppliers.
“ With Exchange for Change now appointed as the UK scheme’ s Deposit Management Organisation( DMO), we are urging the new Welsh Government to appoint Exchange for Change as their DMO urgently so we can all
108 July 2026