Scheme coordinator Exchange for Change (EfC) today announced the new fixed price per material type for supplier contributions that fund the ACT Container Deposit Scheme (CDS) with the new pricing coming into effect for 12 months from the February 2027 invoice to January 2028 invoice.
“The ACT scheme continues to have one of the strongest redemption rates in Australia for similar schemes, with container returns by the community growing year-on-year.
“We’ve undertaken comprehensive modelling and reviewed the latest consumer research data to forecast redemption volumes and costs for the period ahead. We expect the ACT scheme’s strong performance to continue, which is the key driver of the new pricing,” said Danielle Smalley, CEO of scheme coordinator Exchange for Change.
“We have also listened carefully to industry feedback on how to make it easier for suppliers to participate in the ACT CDS.”
Based on this feedback, EfC is announcing the introduction of a Small Supplier and Micro Supplier programs, effective from 1 July 2027:
- the Small Supplier Program will apply to suppliers who supply up to 300,000 containers into the ACT per year, with quarterly reporting of supply volumes and quarterly invoicing
- the Micro Supplier Program will apply to suppliers who supply up to 100,000 containers into the ACT per year, with annual reporting and annual invoicing.
“We’re pleased to announce these changes today in direct response to feedback from the beverage industry.
“Approximately 90 per cent of currently participating beverage suppliers will, from 1 July next year, benefit from these changes which mean less administration and less effort to participate in the ACT scheme, in addition to the suppliers who will be joining the scheme when it expands.
“Thank you to industry for your feedback and ongoing participation in the ACT container deposit scheme,” said Danielle Smalley, CEO of Exchange for Change.
The ACT CDS operates on a cost-recovery basis and does not make a profit.
Beverage suppliers pay a fixed price per material type to fund the scheme. Supplier contribution pricing is calculated based on the scheme’s forecast costs during the pricing period.
More than 498 million drink containers have been returned by the ACT community through the return point network since the scheme began in June 2018.
