Now you can return your takeaway packaging in Copenhagen

It is now possible to return your takeaway packaging in Copenhagen as part of a new recycling system.

The project, which started on Friday, is launched in collaboration between the City of Copenhagen and the company New Loop and includes 32 return stations located in the city center. The trial is expected to run at least until the end of 2026.

The new system allows for purchasing coffee and other hot drinks served in reusable cups, which can then be returned at the stations for a deposit. The initiative aims to reduce the amount of takeaway waste in the streets and in nature.

Technical and Environmental Mayor Line Barfod views the project as an important step towards a more sustainable Copenhagen:
– “The climate does not wait for us. Therefore, it is very good news that we are now creating the opportunity for Copenhageners to reuse their packaging instead of throwing it away for incineration. We need to reuse much more and take care of our resources instead of producing more waste. This trial is an example of how we as a municipality are willing to try out all possibilities to recycle more.”

Initially, the system only includes reusable cups for hot drinks, but there are plans to also include food and beverage packaging. The system is open to other packaging operators who wish to use the return stations in Copenhagen.

At some stations, users also have the option to donate their deposit to the Danish Society for Nature Conservation. The society’s president, Maria Reumert Gjerding, sees great value in the project: “Half of all human-generated waste in the world’s oceans is single-use plastic packaging for takeaways, so there is a great need to address the problem. Therefore, I am pleased that Copenhagen is actually taking action on this. When we create a system where the packaging can be cleaned and used again and again, it benefits both the climate and nature while reducing our resource consumption. We hope that a system like this can be scaled up and expanded nationwide.”

The project is financed by EU funds and is operated by the City of Copenhagen. The reusable cups can initially be obtained from several vendors at TorvehallerneKBH, including Coffee Collective, Grød, Rørt, and Hallernes Smørrebrød.