Romania’s deposit-return system reaches 10 billion returned packaging milestone

Romania’s deposit-return system SGR has collected more than 10 billion beverage containers since its launch, according to RetuRO, which manages the national recycling scheme. The company said the system reached an 85% collection rate in 2026, continuing Romania’s transition toward a circular economy.

To illustrate the scale of the achievement, RetuRO said the collected containers, if placed end to end, could circle the Earth 50 times or cover the distance between Earth and the Moon five times.

“By volume, they could fill the Palace of the Parliament three times, while placed side by side they would cover the entire surface area of Iași, half of Bucharest, or form a neighborhood of 700 four-story apartment buildings,” reads the announcement.

Over the past two and a half years, the system delivered more than 700,000 tonnes of PET plastic, aluminum, and glass to recycling companies, helping supply Romania’s recycling industry with high-quality materials. According to RetuRO, that quantity is comparable to the weight of 15 ships the size of the RMS Titanic or a convoy of 30,000 trucks traveling the route between Bucharest and Cluj-Napoca.

RetuRO operates as a not-for-profit company created by a consortium including beverage producers, retailers, and the Romanian state through the Ministry of Environment.

(Photo source: Inquam Photos/Ovidiu Micsik)