Deposits for bottles or cans are newly implemented and rolled out to new categories in many countries around the world, including recent expansions to cans in the Netherlands. The EU mandates that all EU member states must have a deposit return system in place by 2029, unless they achieve a recycling rate of over 90%. ‘We were surprised at the lack of studies on these ‘bottle bills' and how consumers and retailers react to them,’ says Guyt.

The researchers used the 2009 introduction of a deposit on small bottled water in New York to explore whether the bottle deposit influenced retail prices and what people ended up buying - and the answer is a clear yes. Their findings, published in the prestigious Journal of Marketing (May 2025), shed light on how this environmental policy intervention affects both retailers and consumers.

Key findings

Guyt: ‘We know deposit return schemes tend to increase recycling. Anecdotally, we also knew that not all retailers and consumers were happy with such efforts. We expected that both retailers and consumers would change their ways and set out to shine a light on this. Bottle bills don’t just boost recycling, they reshape what we buy and what retailers charge.’

Retailers raised the prices of deposit-covered bottles by an average of 4%. For smaller bottles – like the popular 500ml size, prices rose by up to 13%. At the same time, sales of these bottles dropped by 6%. Consumers increasingly opted for larger packages to minimize the amount of deposit they needed to pay. Sales of larger bottles (1 litre) rose by 10%.

What caused these shifts? The researchers found that shops facing higher operational costs for processing returns (think staff and store space) were more likely to increase their prices. On the consumer side, values matter too: people who are skeptical of government regulation tended to avoid deposit-covered bottles and switched to larger formats instead.

Why does this matter?

Bottle deposits may seem like a simple environmental fix, but they trigger wider changes in buying habits, pricing strategies, and possibly even plastic use. Still, the researchers conclude that overall, deposit schemes help reduce plastic waste - despite these unintended effects.

Potential insights for policy-makers

If you're a policymaker or marketer, this study shows that even small regulatory changes can have ripple effects. Want to shift behaviour? Look beyond the money—think about convenience, costs, and the values people hold.