The plastic beverage containers our sector uses are made of polyethylene terephthalate (PET), which is a safe, durable, 100% recyclable plastic material. Canada’s beverage container recycling programs collect and recycle more than 7 billion containers annually, including PET beverage bottles. Nationally overall, about 75% of all types of beverage containers are recovered through these programs for recycling.
The national recovery rate is based on available regional data derived from a combination of external (publicly available) and internal (not publicly available) data, that is then weighted based on the population of the covered jurisdictions. The data were provided to CBA courtesy of the applicable provincial and territorial recycling organizations.
BC: In British Columbia, Encorp Pacific reports that the 2021 recovery rate for the province’s beverage container deposit-return system (DRS) stands at 75.9%. This data is publicly available.
AB: The Alberta Beverage Container Recycling Corporation (ABCRC) reports that 84% of beverage containers were recovered by Alberta’s DRS in 2021. This data is also publicly available.
SK: SARCAN reports that 82% of beverage containers are recovered through Saskatchewan’s DRS in 2021, according to their publicly available annual report.
MB: According to the Canadian Beverage Container Recycling Association (CBCRA), 72% of all beverage containers (and 80% of all PET bottles) were recovered for recycling in 2021 through curbside and public space collection programs in Manitoba. The annual report is available here.
ON: Based on waste audits conducted by Stewardship Ontario on behalf of CBA, 74.1% of non-alcoholic beverage containers are recovered for recycling from residences in Ontario. This material may be made available upon request.
QC: According to data provided to CBA by Boissons Gazeuses Environnement (BGE), 71.4% of beverage containers covered by Quebec’s deposit return system were recovered for recycling in 2021.
NB: Based on data from Encorp Atlantic’s annual report, 65.7% of beverage containers recovered by New Brunswick’s DRS were recovered for recycling in 2021.
NS: DivertNS, the organization overseeing Nova Scotia’s recycling programs, reports in their 2020 annual report that 82.4% of beverage containers were recovered for recycling.
PEI: Based on internal data, Prince Edward Island’s deposit return system recovers approximately 81% of beverage containers.
NL: According to Multi-Materials Stewardship Board’s (MMSB) 2021-2022 annual report, 71% of beverage containers covered by Newfoundland’s DRS were recovered for recycling.
Information on beverage container recovery rates in the Yukon Territory, the Northwest Territories, and Nunavut is not currently available.