What is it all About?
The Oregon Bottle Bill was created in 1971 and was a groundbreaking way to encourage recycling in our state. In fact, it was the first bill of its kind in the country. Though we continue to innovate in the area of recycling, we haven’t been meeting our goals the past few years. As a result, the bottle deposit is going up.
Because the redemption rates for 2014 and 2015 were below 80%, ORS 459A.705 requires the refund value to increase to 10¢.
Read the full text of the OLCC explanation by clicking here.
Read a related post on this site about the bottle reuse by clicking here.
OLCC Enforcement
The best practice for all affected beverage companies is always to be in full compliance with the law, but we know it isn’t always easy to hit every deadline. Industry sources have speculated that the year 2017 will likely be a transition year and the OLCC won’t be aggressively going after people with outdated information on their bottles. Resources are tight and the OLCC has many other issues to deal with, like regulating marijuana and it’s packaging.
Don’t Wait Too Long
Presumably most mass merchant stores are going to automatically impose the 10c deposit at the check stand on April 1st, regardless of what the label says. The fee will be collected and the refund will be offered in accordance with the new law right away, even if the label still says 5c redemption in Oregon. Even with that in mind, it is a good time to look at your labels and see if there are other revisions you need. If you need help, we have a great selection of graphic designers that can help – just ask.
Make it an Opportunity for a Facelift
Nobody likes legislation to force them into spending money on label updates. That’s no fun for anyone. But, if you use this change constructively, it can be an opportunity for a brand review. Labels don’t last forever – our most successful beverage brands refresh their labels every 3-5 years. Make it a part of your annual business review to ‘audit’ your branding to make sure it is still telling the story you want. Your target consumer may have shifted over time and you want to make sure your message is still resonating with those core customers. You have to tweak the redemption value, so you might as well get some value out of the process, right?
We Can Help
We aren’t regulatory or compliance lawyers, and we don’t do much true graphic design from scratch. What we do have is a wealth of practical knowledge – we have our finger on the pulse of the beverage market every day. Please call us today – we can help with a simple text change or a full brand refresh. Cheers!