Europe

A beer for the environment: Every Can Counts supports Austrian brewery Bierol and NGO Protect our Winters in a joint recycling project

A beer for the environment: Every Can Counts supports Austrian brewery Bierol and NGO Protect our Winters in a joint recycling project 2362 1575 adminEirini

Bierol, a brewery in Tyrol (Austria) and the environmental organization Protect our Winters Austria (POW) have joined forces to save what everyone loves: Austrian mountains and their surrounding nature. With a beer that was crafted for this special project they want to set an example for proper recycling and promote the importance of a more circular economy. Jede Dose zählt supports the project with its expertise in can recycling.


How does a beer help the environment?
It’s super easy: “Cold Stoke” – a Pale Ale filled in cans is the ideal beer to take up on the mountain and enjoy in beautiful nature. There is no chance of breaking or sunshine changing the taste of the beer. When the can is empty however, it becomes even more powerful: Because for every recycled can of “Cold Stoke” Bierol donates 50 Cents to POW and the money directly goes into environmental projects.


Christoph Bichler, head brewer and owner of Bierol, mentioned: “The aluminium recycling rate in Austria is currently at 70 percent, that is not enough. If we want to protect our environment, we have to be more careful with resources and more importantly, we cannot leave packaging lying around in nature. With our new campaign we want to draw attention to this issue and be part of the change.”

Drink. Recycle. Protect our nature.
“Cold Stoke” is the first Austrian beer that sets an example for environmental protection in this specific way and everyone can be part of it: Buy a “Cold Stoke“, enjoy the taste and send a photo of recycling the empty can to the Instagram account of @protectourwintersaustria –Bierol will then donate 50 Cents to the NGO.


The beer is now available in the Bierol online shop and selected beer shops in Austria.

Find out more: www.bierol.at, www.protectourwinters.at
Instagram: @protectourwintersaustria, @bierol

Recycling on ice: Every Can Counts partners with KAWEA to recycle beverage cans at Grazer Winterwelt

Recycling on ice: Every Can Counts partners with KAWEA to recycle beverage cans at Grazer Winterwelt 1920 600 adminEirini

The ice skating rink “Grazer Winterwelt“ in the capital of Styria, Austria has been open since November. For the first time, the organizers partner with Every Can Counts and the Styrian drink brand KAWEA to put environmental protection next to ice skating on the agenda of the event. Ice rink branded can bins invite people to recycle their consumed cans and promoters with backpacks inform visitors about drink can recycling and why it matters.

“We want to offer our visitors a fantastic ice skating experience and encourage them to take care of the environment. Together with Every Can Counts and KAWEA we have set up recycling containers to collect beverage cans to bring them back in the recycling loop”, says Nina Mally from “Grazer Winterwelt“.

Claudia Bierth, spokesperson for Every Can Counts Austria, is very pleased about the cooperation: “More and more event organizers approach us to make their events greener. In the case of beverage cans, recycling not only means conservation of resources, but 95 % less energy compared to the production of new aluminium. The can is a ‘perfect fit’ for the circular economy.”

Until the end of January visitors can skate, try some pirouettes or play ice hockey at “Grazer Winterwelt“ – and do something good for the environment at the same time.

Aluminium beverage can recycling remains at a high 76% in 2019

Aluminium beverage can recycling remains at a high 76% in 2019 2560 1707 adminEirini

Increased consumption in 2019 led to a record number of 36.5 billion cans being recycled, or 488,000 tons of aluminium, saving 4 million tonnes CO2.

A new report by Metal Packaging Europe and European Aluminium shows that the overall recycling rate for aluminium beverage cans in the European Union1, Switzerland, Norway and Iceland remained stable in 2019 at 76% (75.8%). With a growing can consumption, the total amount of aluminium recycled from cans reached a record level of 488,000 tonnes and represents a total Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions saving of 4 million tonnes of CO2 (equivalent to the amount of GHG emissions produced by a European town of 440,000 inhabitants like Bratislava, Tallinn or Murcia2.)

Can manufacturers (members of Metal Packaging Europe) and their aluminium suppliers (members of European Aluminium) welcomed the new result but say that with some extra effort, the recycling rates could go even higher. In March 2021, the two industry associations launched their joint Roadmap towards 100% can recycling by the year 2030. This ambitious target can only be reached if existing packaging collection systems in Europe are further improved or replaced by well-designed deposit return systems for beverage cans and other relevant beverage containers.

With an increasing demand for fully circular packaging systems, the aluminium beverage can, which is made from an endlessly recyclable material, is the ideal alternative to less sustainable packaging options,” said Léonie Knox-Peebles, CEO of Metal Packaging Europe. “We now need to work together to make sure that even more used cans are correctly disposed of and recycled so that we reach our ambitious 2030 goal. We are confident that the credentials highlighted in our Metal Recycles Forever logo will incite consumers to do just that.”

We would like to see more countries moving towards modern and well-designed deposit return systems, allowing for an optimal use of the high scrap value and quality of the collected aluminium cans,” Maarten Labberton, Director Packaging Group at European Aluminium, stressed. “Although used cans are also recycled into a wide range of other valuable end-use products like bikes or electric vehicles, the most efficient solution is to use them again for the production of new cans. No other type of beverage packaging can reach such high recycling rates whilst using so little primary material, resulting in product circularity as well as carbon emissions reductions.”

Here is a detailed overview of aluminium drink can recycling rates by country in 2019. Recycling rates have been calculated on the basis of the present EU reporting rules.

2019 European aluminium beverage can recycling rates (EU28 + Iceland, Norway & Switzerland), sources: EPR schemes (Green Dot, others), Deposit Return Systems (cans), EUROSTAT (aluminium/metal packaging), industry reports, PRN notes (UK)


* Including the United Kingdom for the reporting year 2019
** If a yearly GHG emission of 9,2 tonnes is assumed per EU citizen as used in the Product Environmental Footprint methodology, see Normalisation method and data for Environmental Footprints – Deliverable 2 of the AA Environmental Footprint and Material Efficiency Support for Product Policy (No. 70307/2012/ENV.C.1/635340)

Brazil becomes the first country outside of Europe to join the Every Can Counts initiative

Brazil becomes the first country outside of Europe to join the Every Can Counts initiative 1920 1080 adminEirini

With a recycling rate of over 95% for aluminium cans, Brazil will be an important partner of the Every Can Counts growing community

After 12 years of inspiring people to recycle on the go and with 19 European countries now on board, the Every Can Counts initiative welcomes Brazil to its growing community. A community of people, brands, festivals, and organizations that work together towards the vision of a 100% recycling rate for drink cans.

Called “Cada Lata Conta”, the Brazilian version of Every Can Counts is being launched by Abralatas, the Brazilian Association of Aluminium Can Manufacturers (Associação Brasileira dos Fabricantes de Latas de Alumínio). The programme officially kicked off with a set of environmental education and behaviour change activities at the Villa-Lobos Park in São Paulo (4-5 December), and in celebration of the Carnatal in Natal (9-12 December).

Keeping the cycle going from São Paulo to Carnatal

Gigantic metal structures in the shape of recycling symbols were installed at the heart of Villa-Lobos Park, and recycling ambassadors with green backpacks engaged with over 20,000 people to raise awareness of recycling while collecting cans. At the same time, graffiti art panels made from over 30,000 recycled cans and designed by artist Ricardo Kaur became highly popular for photo opportunities.

After São Paulo, the Cada Lata Conta team arrived in Carnatal, the largest off-season Carnival in Brazil, held in the city of Natal (RN). As part of a collaboration between Cada Lata Conta and the Coocamar waste picker cooperative, seventy backpackers engaged with people to make sure every can was collected during the four days of the festival. The programme expects this partnership to showcase the environmental, economic, and social benefits of recycling while highlighting the important role of the waste pickers as an essential part of Brazil’s recycling system.

Visitors of both events not only enjoyed the head-turning installations but also had the chance to learn more about the launch of the programme in Brazil and the upcoming initiatives. Cada Lata Conta now features a brand-new Portuguese-language website, as well as social media channels to promote the importance of the circular economy for the sustainable future of our planet. 

According to Cátilo Cândido, Executive President of Abralatas, these events were the first of many to come to Brazil and represent a new kind of consumer-focused campaigns to promote recycling in the country.  “As a matter of fact, Cada Lata Conta/Every Can Counts values individual actions, especially with the new generation of consumers. Brazil already boasts one of the highest drink can recycling rates in the world: consistently above 95% with the commitment to maintain and even improve further this percentage”, says Cândido. “We want to show Brazilians a true example of a circular economy in a fun, straightforward, and creative way.”

“The launch of Cada Lata Conta in Brazil is a natural extension of our commitment and vision in Europe: We strive to reach 100% drink can recycling and raise awareness among all consumers around the world about the importance of keeping drink cans in the recycling loop, wherever they consume them”, says David Van Heuverswyn, Director Every Can Counts Europe.

About ABRALATAS

Founded 18 years ago, Abralatas is the main representative of Brazil’s aluminium beverage can industry. The third largest market globally, it provides the primary packaging for beers and other drink products in the country. While Brazil enjoys a record can recycling rate, the organization’s aim is to strengthen and develop the aluminium can industry in a socially and environmentally responsible way.

For more information: www.cadalataconta.com.br

Cada Lata Cuenta invites us to reflect on responsible consumption at Christmas

Cada Lata Cuenta invites us to reflect on responsible consumption at Christmas 2560 853 adminEirini

The Fuenlabrada City Council (Community of Madrid) and Cada Lata Cuenta have inaugurated two sustainable murals made with recycled beverage cans for the Christmas festivities.
These two Pixelatas are created from 4000 recycled cans and establish a contrasting conversation between the image of a girl and the deep and direct gaze of a chimpanzee.


The installation suggests how the chimpanzee, which shares 99% of its genes with humans, behaves so differently. It lives in harmony with the rest of the creatures allowing the ecosystem to be sustainable in the long term. However, the human being seems to function in the opposite way to the chimpanzee, living disconnected from nature, following an unsustainable life model.


For the second consecutive year, the Fuenlabrada City Council has collaborated with Cada Lata Cuenta to spread the message ​​of sustainability and recycling to the people through recycled art, reminding them that even during the holidays, they should never stop caring about the environment.

A rainbow of hope during the COP26 summit

A rainbow of hope during the COP26 summit 2560 1852 adminEirini

The #EveryCanCounts rainbow was presented in Glasgow for COP26 to remind people about the importance of recycling empty drink cans.

The now iconic symbol of Every Can Counts, the rainbow archway, was prominently displayed in Shawlands Civic Square in partnership with Glasgow City Council. Its goal? To raise awareness about the importance of recycling and inspire even more people to place their empties in the right bin.

The eye-catching installation, placed in front of Langside Halls, consists of more than 2,500 brightly coloured recycled drink cans and measures four metres high and seven metres wide. It took four people more than five hours to construct and remained in place until early November, spreading the recycling message over the first week of the climate change conference.

Every Can Counts’ own research suggests that more than 2.8 million drink cans are bought and used each week throughout Glasgow. Aluminium is infinitely recyclable and recycling just one can saves enough energy to power a TV for three hours. If all of these cans were recycled, it would give greenhouse gas savings equivalent to taking more than 7,200 cars off the city’s roads for a week.

Eight in 10 of those questioned say they always use recycling bins if they are available in public places, with more than seven in 10 claiming that they would recycle more while out and about if there were a greater number of recycling bins.

In fact, almost two thirds of Glaswegians say they have become more concerned about the environment and their impact on it over the last 12 months. Half believe this is due to Glasgow’s involvement in the conference.

“The rainbow is our way of reminding people about the importance of recycling cans at a time when the environment is firmly on the city’s agenda. Recycling an empty drink can is such an easy thing that each of us can do to help the planet. It might not seem like much, but every can is endlessly recyclable and making a can from recycled metal rather than raw materials uses 95% less energy and produces 95% less greenhouse gas emissions. In 2020, a record four out of five drink cans sold in the UK were recycled, given peoples’ lifestyles changed dramatically and we spent much of the year in lockdown. We want to continue making progress now the country has opened back up and our ultimate goal is to achieve a 100% recycling rate for drink cans”, Chris Latham-Warde, Programme Manager for Every Can Counts, said.

A rainbow to unite us all under one cause

This symbol, aiming to inspire more action towards aluminium can recycling, was embraced by citizens and politicians alike. “This installation was a reminder of the importance of recycling, and the significant environmental benefits it brings. We can all play our part in reducing emissions by recycling as much as we can”, councillor Anna Richardson, City Convener for Sustainability and Carbon Reduction at Glasgow City Council said.

I was thrilled to see the Every Can Counts rainbow in my constituency. It acted as a key reminder of the importance of recycling more and keeping our streets tidy over the course of the landmark COP26 Summit and beyond. Shifting towards infinitely recyclable materials like aluminium and keeping these materials in circulation by recycling is something we can all do to progress towards a truly circular economy, and to meet the aims of this pivotal Summit in Glasgow”, said Alison Thewliss, MP for Glasgow Central.

An ideal backdrop for selfies and quite a spectacle for photos, the rainbow managed to get tens of people to capture it with their cameras. At the same time, visitors had the chance to win a £100 shopping voucher and a £500 donation to an environmental charity of their choice. The winner selected South Seeds, a community organisation based in South Central Glasgow that works to enable local residents to lead more sustainable lives.

But that’s not all. The #EveryCanCounts rainbow installation was also featured prominently by leading newspapers and media, such as The Times, Glasgow Times, and Glasgow World.

Every Can Counts partners with popular hard seltzer brand White Claw

Every Can Counts partners with popular hard seltzer brand White Claw 1920 1080 adminEirini

We are really excited to announce the new brand partnership between Every Can Counts Ireland and UK with the global hard seltzer brand, White Claw, to help inspire and encourage drink can recycling.

The partnership will see White Claw collaborate with our teams in Ireland and the UK, drink can manufacturers and the wider recycling industry to raise awareness of the importance of recycling and increase recycling rates across both the UK and Ireland.

As part of the partnership, White Claw will provide funding to our programme, with both brands working together to spread the message that drink cans are infinitely recyclable.

To mark the launch of the partnership in Ireland, our team provided recycling support at White Claw’s summer pop-up brand activation in Dublin, which ran in last month. A unique recycling cage installation in the shape of a ‘recycle swoosh’ allowed members of the public to see the progress of their recycling efforts throughout the day, while a can crusher beside the installation added an interactive element for those making their empty cans count.

White Claw will also be using our programme’s recycling bins at a number of upcoming sampling activities in the UK in order to make it easier for consumers to do the right thing with their empty cans.

Made with sparkling water, triple distilled spirit and a hint of natural flavour, White Claw Hard Seltzers are stocked in major retailers across the UK and Ireland.

Michael Dean, Head of Marketing at White Claw, said: “Being one of the most popular hard seltzer brands, it’s so important to us that each and every one of our drink cans sold in the UK and Ireland are recycled. With the support of Every Can Counts, we’re confident that we can do our bit to help inspire our customers to close the loop when it comes to empty cans.”

Róisín O’Brien, Every Can Counts Ireland programme manager, said: “We’re very excited to announce our latest partnership with White Claw. It’s great to see such a globally recognised brand taking steps to help raise awareness and encourage drink can recycling. Consumers are increasingly conscious of the environment and their impact on it, but there’s definitely more we can do with White Claw and the wider industry to drive positive change in the years to come.”

As a unique partnership formed between drink can manufacturers and the wider recycling industry, our programme’s vision is to reach a 100% recycling rate for drinks cans in Europe.

Last year saw record-highs for the UK’s recycling rates with more than four out of five drink cans sold in the country being recycled as nationwide lockdowns made it easier for people to recycle.

Ireland has one of the highest rates in Europe for aluminium drink can recycling and recovery, with 89% of cans sold in the country being recycled or recovered in 2019.

Let’s keep the cycle going!

CANMAGEDON race at Red Bull Roof Ride in Katowice

CANMAGEDON race at Red Bull Roof Ride in Katowice 1920 1080 adminEirini

The Red Bull Roof Ride was held for the first time in Poland and attracted thousands of visitors to the Spodek Arena in Katowice. As lots of beverages in cans were consumed there, Every Can Counts was invited to support the event and make sure all cans are recycled.

This time our Polish team decided to create something totally new -the CANMAGEDON, a creative concept that encourages selective collection by pushing the limits, motivating, and educating people about the can recycling process.

CANMAGEDON is a race where each obstacle represents one stage from the drink can’s life cycle. Everything starts, of course, from the collection phase, by placing the can in the yellow bin. The idea of this project is to show how simple and important this act is. 

With lots of people stopping by to interact with CANMAGEDON, everyone is looking forward to the next season and to more smart initiatives to promote drink can recycling!

Check the highlights:

&ΞANA We CAN Dance: A creative campaign by Kathe Kouti Metrai

&ΞANA We CAN Dance: A creative campaign by Kathe Kouti Metrai 2496 1406 adminEirini

&ΞANA (&AGAIN in Greek) is an energetic campaign that brings together selected Greek creatives with our local programme Kathe Kouti Metrai and the Every Can Counts mission to encourage  people to recycle their drink cans wherever they are, and to have fun doing so. 

Inspired by the unique properties of aluminium drink cans, that can be recycled over and over again – essentially forever – the campaign’s goal is to create original content that highlights the importance of on-the-go recycling, while promoting the principles of a more circular economy. 

&ΞANA Vol1 – We CAN Dance 

What do recycling and dancing have in common? Just like with dancing, in order to start the infinite recycling cycle, all you need is someone to make the first step. And, as with almost everything, change can only happen when it starts from within our own self. For Matthew Papadopoulos, an award-winning choreographer and founding member of the legendary LoonaBeats Crew in Thessaloniki, this was the core idea behind his powerful dance act that aims to inspire people to change attitudes and behaviours around drink can recycling.

Through a dynamic, energetic choreography, Matthew along with eight more dancers, show us how small gestures in our everyday life can have a big impact on the environment and invite us to think about what we can do today to make a difference tomorrow; placing the empty drink cans in the right bin is the first and most important step of the can recycling journey – an incredibly quick process where old drink cans become part of a new bike, car, coffee pot or even new cans within 60 days of being collected. And everything starts again &AGAIN, forever. 

We CAN dance, we can make a difference! Watch the full video 👇

Concept-choreography: Matthew Papadopoulos @matthewpap_lbc, @academy_skg

Directed by: @yourwhitemoments

Dancers: @maria.vernardou, @alex.savides, @laertisiskoss, @stella_mpakirtzi, @stephaniechatz, @vasilis_karajohn, @jimmy_orlia, @sia_mouss

Ogni Lattina Vale and Amazon Italy join forces as part of the “Recycling Week 2021” initiative

Ogni Lattina Vale and Amazon Italy join forces as part of the “Recycling Week 2021” initiative 1920 1080 adminEirini

To achieve a truly circular economy and 100% can recycling throughout Europe, people and brands need to act in unison. It’s with great pleasure then that Ogni Lattina Vale, our programme in Italy, have partnered with Amazon for a joint activity in September and October to further pursue this goal.

As part of the “Recycling Week 2021” initiative, three of Amazon’s operation centres, Passo Corese, Colleferro, and Terrazza Piemontese will organise a separate collection of used aluminium cans by the company’s employees. All cans collected will be recycled with the support of CIAL, Italy’s National Aluminium Packaging Consortium, which represents the Every Can Counts programme in the country.

The proceeds from the recycled cans will be then donated by Amazon and CIAL to a non-profit organization that will be identified later. This project is coordinated by CIAL to strengthen the separate collection of aluminium, in a country where approximately 70% of the aluminium packaging is recycled every year.

Despite the obvious challenges brought by the pandemic, Ogni Lattina Vale has managed to secure a variety of partnerships and activations during major events such as the Misano Moto GP, the Viareggio Carnival, the Giffoni Film Festival, and a summer recycling campaign  in over a hundred Calabrian beaches,  together with  the Marine Parks Authority of the Region.