Europe

The Ljubav Festival celebrated for its lively atmosphere, charitable mission, and outstanding music performances, took place on August 24th at the Port of Belgrade. This year, the event added an exciting new layer by partnering with our initiative, Svaka limenka se računa, incorporating environmental protection into its well-established humanitarian focus.

The aim was simple yet meaningful: to raise awareness about the importance of recycling drink cans and encourage festival-goers to participate. Attendees could either drop their empty aluminium cans into dedicated recycling spots spread throughout the venue or dispose of them directly into the signature backpacks, designed for on-the-go recycling and carried by our easily recognizable recycling ambassadors. Every collected can was sent straight for recycling, helping to reduce waste and promoting a more sustainable lifestyle.

Adding to the festival’s appeal, a live art installation took place, where an artist used recycled drink cans as a canvas to create an extraordinary piece. This artwork not only captivated the audience but also creatively highlighted the endless possibilities of aluminium. The finished piece will be sold, with all proceeds going to charity, bringing the festival’s vision full circle — blending entertainment, environmental awareness, and a strong commitment to helping others.

Cieszanów Rock Festival is one of those events our Polish initiative eagerly returns to every year—a place filled with great music, incredible energy, and amazing people. This year, the festival was not only about rocking out, but also bringing recycling to the spotlight, thanks to Każda Puszka Cenna.

Our recycling ambassadors were on the spot encouraging everyone to recycle their empty cans using the programme’s signature backpacks or special bins across the festival grounds. They helped raise awareness about the benefits of recycling, and every festival goer knew they were contributing to something bigger. With just a simple act, like recycling, we are making a world of difference for our planet. Once recycled, aluminum cans can be back on the shelf in just 60 days. This circular process keeps valuable resources in use, reducing the demand for new raw materials and cutting down on emissions.

At Cieszanów Rock Festival, the atmosphere was electric! People danced, sang, and enjoyed the best of rock music, all while being active of their role in protecting the environment. this year’s festival wasn’t just about great tunes—it was also a reminder of how important it is to take care of the planet. Recycling became part of the fun, adding a meaningful layer to the festival experience. Cieszanów Rock Festival has shown that sustainability and fun go hand in hand.

This year, our initiative in Czechia continued its long-standing collaboration with Prague Pride. During Pride week, the metal heart installation for collecting cans and recycling bins were prominently placed at Střelecký ostrov, the central hub of all festival activities, making Každá plechovka se počítá both visible and useful.

The festival reached its peak on Saturday when the Pride Parade made its way through Prague’s historic centre. Our recycling ambassadors mingled with the crowds at Wenceslas Square, collecting used cans and promoting the programme’s recycling message. Later, the metal heart was moved from Střelecký ostrov to Letná Park, where the Parade concluded and the celebrations continued.

This year, our team also fostered successful partnerships with Red Bull and PROUD Brewery, two prominent brands in the beverage industry. On Saturday, they distributed over 8,000 drink cans combined, contributing to the collection of approximately 20,000 drink cans throughout the day. This successful collaboration paves the way for more exciting partnerships in the future.

Pol’and’Rock Festival, the largest non-profit festival in Europe, once again became a platform for promoting sustainability this year. With over 20 dedicated recycling ambassadors, our Polish team, Każda Puszka Cenna, encouraged festival-goers to recycle aluminium cans in the spirit of environmental responsibility. As the spiritual successor to the legendary Woodstock festival of ’69, Pol’and’Rock radiates the same energy of peace, love, and togetherness, making it the perfect setting for the programme’s mission.

The festival, a celebration of the Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity Foundation’s efforts, welcomed 700,000 attendees over three days—nearly matching the population of Kraków. This year, our initiative amplified the recycling message by partnering with one of Poland’s largest breweries, Kompania Piwowarska, to highlight the importance of recycling and its environmental benefits.

The activities took place in two dynamic zones. The first, supported by CANMAGEDON, featured an exciting obstacle course that illustrated the circular lifecycle of aluminium cans. It also included the Every Can Counts PixelCan installation, an artistic installation created from 2,000 recycled cans. In the second zone, participants engaged in logic games using cans, tested their knowledge with a quiz on aluminium recycling, and even had the chance to create a 360-degree movie—all while learning about the importance of recycling.

Throughout the festival, our recycling ambassadors and the recycling spots were a constant presence, helping collect over 22,000 empty cans. These cans were later sold, with the proceeds supporting local environmental organizations, turning our efforts into a direct benefit for the community.

Antiparos is leading the way towards a circular economy by launching an innovative aluminium can recycling station. This project, coordinated by our initiative, Every Can Counts Greece (Kathe Kouti Metrai), and designed by the award-winning design studio Studiolav, combines practical recycling benefits with artistic value.

Every Can Counts Greece (Kathe Kouti Metrai), in collaboration with the Municipality of Antiparos, has initiated a pilot campaign to evaluate citizen engagement and return rates within the framework of a Deposit Return Scheme (DRS). The recycling station, inspired by Cycladic architecture and the distinctive attributes of aluminium, serves as both a functional recycling point and an art installation, creatively promoting the concept of a circular economy. 

Antiparos residents of all age groups participated in the launch event. They learned about the initiative and engaged with the installed recycling machines, exchanging their drink cans for sustainable incentives and contributing to a charitable cause. The proceeds from recycling these cans will be donated to improve the sports facilities at Antiparos’ school, supporting the local community and encouraging sustainability.

The project’s mission is to establish a circular system for managing packaging materials on the island, striving for climate neutrality, and achieving a 100% recycling rate for aluminium cans. “Our main priority is to educate the locals and visitors of our island about the separate collection of packaging materials and inspire them to adopt a more sustainable lifestyle. Recycling is key to building a healthier future for the next generations,” said the Mayor of Antiparos, Anastasios Faroupos, during the launch event.

This initiative gains even greater significance in light of the new E.U. Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation, which requires all member states to meet ambitious targets for the collection and recycling of packaging materials. As Maarten Labberton, Director of the Packaging Group at European Aluminium, explained, “By January 1, 2029, the separate collection of aluminium cans across Europe must reach 90%. This is the only way to keep them in the loop. And there’s no better starting point for our environmental cycle than the Cyclades and Antiparos.”

Recycling Blending Seamlessly with the Environment

Designed by Studiolav, the project integrates three key elements of Cycladic architecture—arches, stairs, and windmills—creating a seamless blend with the island’s natural landscape. “Made entirely from aluminium, the station shows how collective recycling efforts can be transformed into new,” explained designers Loukas Angelou and Vasso Asfi.

Real-Time Impact: Tracking the Number of Cans Recycled and CO2 Emissions Saved

Each time a can is recycled, the system provides real-time updates on the total number of cans recycled on the island and the associated CO2 emissions saved. It recognizes each can’s barcode, size, weight, and material, providing detailed data on the amounts of recyclable materials collected. The station features two state-of-the-art reverse vending machines from Finnish company Pure Recycle, capable of collecting and compressing aluminium cans of all sizes and shapes. This compact and efficient solution is designed specifically for small communities, offering significant cost and space savings.

“These cans will be brought to our factory in Oinofyta. They will be processed using the most modern methods, and in 60 days, they can become cans again and return to store shelves. We can help Antiparos achieve high recycling rates and, why not, become the first island in Greece to reach 100%,” said Konstantinos Katsaros, Vice-chairman of the Board of Directors of ELVALHALCOR S.A.

Over 20 local businesses have joined the initiative, offering rewards for recycled cans that can be redeemed via QR codes. Since the machines’ installation at the end of 2023, more than 15,000 cans have been recycled, reflecting the community’s awareness and participation. “Antiparos CAN Recycle combines art with recycling, making it more accessible. The lifecycle of aluminium is a form of art, turning materials into something new and giving them new life over and over again,” said Eirini Topouzidou, programme manager of Every Can Counts in Greece.
All aluminium cans collected will be sent to the Greek aluminium industry for recycling, adhering to international standards to minimize energy consumption, waste, and emissions.

At the launch event on the island’s main pedestrian street, locals and visitors learned about the benefits of recycling and inaugurated the new station by recycling their cans. Sustainable gifts, including a RICICLETTA® bicycle made from 800 aluminium cans, were raffled off.

Watch the video of the launch event.

This year our Polish team, Każda Puszka Cenna joined forces with Kompania Piwowarska, Poland’s largest beer producer and part of Asahi Europe and International, to promote recycling at three popular festivals: the Polish Hip-Hop Festival, Audioriver, and Pol’and’Rock Festival.

Together, they created a special zone that grabbed the attention of festival-goers, offering a fun and educational space to learn about the benefits of recycling. This partnership with Kompania Piwowarska helped us spread the recycling message even further.

“The starting point for this collaboration is the company’s goal of ‘Creating Meaningful Connections.’ Beyond selling beer and promoting our brands, we want to actively participate in creating a positive atmosphere at events where everyone feels good, and in managing the waste associated with our beer sales. That’s why, together with our partners, we’re taking actions that can be both simple and effective. We focused on education but more importantly on proper waste management, especially that related to our products, to show that caring for the environment can go hand in hand with good fun” – says Małgorzata Walędzińska-Półtorak, Sustainable Development Manager in Kompania Piwowarska.

Thanks to this collaboration, in 2024, Każda Puszka Cenna not only collected almost 24,000 aluminum cans but also helped build a community that is more aware of the environmental challenges we face.

Alfredo Longo is a well-known Belgian artist who is famous for making the most beautiful artwork from aluminium cans. Alfredo creates frameworks in the shapes of a giant whale, the earth, a large face with a butterfly and other impressive pieces. The frameworks are covered with cans in all types of colours. CANPACK has been of great help here by offering 4,000 cans to create the pieces of art. Besides the art pieces, Alfredo also created a metal-shaped heart bin for Every Can Counts Benelux.

On the heart, Every Can Counts’s logo has been placed, including a QR code to our team’s Instagram and the metal recycles forever sign. In this way, the visitors of the exhibition can throw away their used cans in the bin, which will be completely filled with cans and can be used for a new statue again. The exhibition opened on July 12th. During the launch event, Every Can Counts Global Director, David van Heuverswyn, gave a short speech, and our recycling ambassadors walked around to interact with the visitors. A press release was also sent out, which led to beautiful publications in national news media and lifestyle media like Sud Info, DH, Flair, and Marie Claire.

The pieces of art are displayed at the main square in the city of Mons and in the Salle Saint-Georges from July 13th until October 27th. You can find more information about the exhibition here: https://www.alfredolongo.com/evenements/

For the past three years, our team, Minden Doboz Visszajár, has been a part of the Hungarian Formula 1 Grand Prix at the Hungaroring, promoting aluminium can recycling in a unique and engaging way. Each year, they’ve seized the opportunity to showcase the programme’s innovative PixelCan installation daily throughout the three-day event. They’ve also collected cans with their signature backpacks and encouraged participation through educational voting boxes.

This year, it marked a special occasion with the introduction of Hungary’s Deposit Return Scheme (DRS). In response to the growing demand for sustainable practices, and at the request of the Hungaroring, our team has expanded its efforts significantly. They established four dedicated collection points across the venue to gather cans that are now eligible for return through the DRS separately, giving supporters a simple way to contribute to making the Grand Prix more sustainable.

Their collective efforts yielded impressive results. Throughout the event, Minden Doboz Visszajár collected 15,000 aluminium cans. This achievement generated substantial media attention, resulting in nearly 30 press appearances reaching over one million people. Our recycling message became a headline story on the country’s most-listened-to commercial radio station, highlighting the growing importance of sustainability in Hungary and beyond.

The regional music festival, Nektar OK Fest, took place from July 18 to 21 in the enchanting setting of Tjentiste within Sutjeska National Park, Bosnia and Herzegovina. This magical location was the perfect backdrop for our initiative, Svaka limenka se računa, which aimed to highlight the importance of recycling and contribute to preserving the festival’s beautiful environment.

Our team worked diligently to promote drink can recycling during the four-day event, which featured renowned regional and international music stars and attracted thousands of guests. The result was impressive: over 10,000 used aluminium beverage cans were collected. A reward system was implemented to encourage visitors to recycle. Using the innovative Smart Flex system, developed in partnership with Solagro Smart Recycling, conscientious festival-goers received printed vouchers for each can they recycled. These vouchers could then be exchanged for prizes, making the act of recycling both fun and rewarding.

Adding a unique artistic dimension to the joint efforts, the signature Every Can Counts PixelCan was also on the spot. This exceptional painting canvas, made from 2,000 used aluminium cans, was transformed into a piece of art by talented artists during the festival, inspiring all with the potential of recycling.

The activation carried out in collaboration with Nektar Beer and Banja Luka Brewery, sent a powerful message: aluminium packaging is an excellent choice due to its infinite recyclability and reminded festival attendees that recycling is vital for preserving our environment.

Our French initiative, Chaque Canette Compte, played a key part during the Paris Olympic torch relay, reinforcing Coca-Cola’s efforts to collect and recycle every can. With its extensive expertise in recycling initiatives, Chaque Canette Compte was tasked with raising awareness and collecting cans throughout the three-month relay, which passed through a selection of major cities in France, setting the stage for the 2024 Olympic Games.

During this iconic event, Coca-Cola’s animation teams led the way, collecting cans from the crowd. Following closely behind, our team performed a second round of recycling on the go, ensuring that no cans were left behind on the streets. This thorough approach helped maintain clean streets and fostered a recycling culture during the relay.

Over the course of the relay, our team collected 253,401 cans, reached 8,000,000 people, and covered 500 kilometres on foot with backpacks across more than 100 of France’s largest cities but the activation didn’t end there. Chaque Canette Compte also launched a local recycling campaign during the Olympics in Paris, with a special PixelCan activity hosted in Nanterre’s Club24 area. Looking ahead, our initiative will continue its critical role during the next torch relay for the Paralympic Games, ensuring that sustainability remains at the forefront of these global events.