Singapore's National Environment Agency (NEA) is introducing a beverage container return scheme (BCRS) producer transition grant to help beverage companies prepare for the rollout of the country's post-consumer polyethylene terephthalate (PET) deposit return system.
All registered beverage producers will automatically receive up to S$2,500 ($1,900) to help offset early compliance costs under the new extended producer responsibility (EPR) framework, the NEA said. The grant covers product registration fees, producer fees and the cost of scheme stickers, with eligible charges automatically deducted from the grant during billing.
Set to launch on 1 April, the BCRS will require beverage containers to carry a deposit mark and a Singapore-specific barcode. Consumers will pay a 10-cent deposit for most bottled and canned beverages, which can be redeemed when empty bottles and cans are returned at designated points. More than 1,000 reverse vending machines (RVMs) are expected to be deployed as part of the nationwide rollout.
The deposit system is intended to lift Singapore's recovery rates for beverage containers and reduce waste sent for disposal. The NEA highlighted that cleaner, traceable streams of post-consumer PET collected through the scheme are expected to improve the availability of feedstock for recycled polymer production, supporting national waste-reduction goals.
The NEA has also extended the transition period for companies from three to six months, giving producers until 30 September 2027 to fully utilise the grant. The scheme will be administered by the appointed operator, also named BCRS, formed by Singapore's largest beverage producers Coca-Cola, F&N Foods and Pokka, for managing fee collection and container returns.
