Europe

This summer, ExtravaCANza, the  campaign that is launched every year by Every Can Counts in Romania is traveling to a new location, one of the most vivid places in the country, Costinești, to reach younger holidaymakers and encourage them to recycle their empties regardless of their shape, size or color. 

Located on the shore of the Black Sea, this famous resort is a really popular holiday destination for young people and our team is there to collect and recycle every empty drink can while having fun under the sun. Using a VTMB machine to set up a recycling point, part of the ExtravaCANza campaign is to ensure that there is sufficient recycling infrastructure in the area, making it easier for vacationers to recycle their empties, while our ambassadors are raising awareness about the importance of drink can recycling on the beach.

With the support of our partners (Coca-Cola HBC, Bergenbier S.A., PENNY, GreenPoint Management), the small act of recycling every drink can and helping keep the beach clean is awarded! Some of the symbolic prizes include free drinks in cans and vouchers. 

After last year’s success our programme in Spain launches once again the “Circula tu lata” environmental campaign to promote a more sustainable way of life and drink can recycling on Spanish beaches. 

This year, Cada Lata Cuenta’s summer campaign returns to the beaches of La Caleta, Santa María, La Victoria and Cortadura, located in the south of the country (Cádiz, Andalusia) and also to the beaches of Riazor and Orzán, in the north (A Coruña, Galicia). The objective is to raise awareness about the importance of keeping public outdoor spaces clean. To do so, during the whole month of August, recycling ambassadors will roam these beaches, donning their vibrant backpacks and collecting cans to recycle and give them a new life. 

Additionally, in Cádiz, our initiative is cooperating with a group of can street vendors to  convey a 360-message highlighting the importance of recycling, from the  moment a drink can is purchased all the way to the recycling plant.

Stendhal Festival is a firm favourite for Northern Irish music lovers and this year marked its eleventh year anniversary. Running from Friday to Sunday, this three day festival takes place across 2 main fields housing 4 stages and 2 bars.

The Every Can Counts team were assigned an end of line wooden hut to set up a base in. Being end of line, this allowed for further expansion with a branded canopy and table. Can cages were also set up next to the BBC Radio tent, giving more media attention to the campaign taking place.

Across the weekend, the recycling ambassadors received high engagement and an enthusiastic response from the festival goers, in particular children who were eager to collect cans and fill the cages. As well as on the ground activity, including a total of 136 surveys, the Every Can Counts staff managed to secure two radio interviews with BBC Ulster. This amplified the reach of the main campaign message.

Overall, the event resulted in a successful weekend for the Every Can Counts programme in Ireland along with positive growth in awareness for the campaign initiative.

For a second year in a row, Ogni Lattina Vale joined forces with the Ente Parchi Marini Regionali della Calabria (Agency for the Regional Marine Parks of Calabria), CIAL (Italian National Consortium of Aluminium Packaging), Coca-Cola and 14 municipalities* in the area of the Marine Parks of Calabria, for the initiative “In the marine parks of Calabria… every can counts”.

After last years’ experience, during which over 150.000 cans were collected, this summer once again our recycling ambassadors put on their green backpacks to roam beaches, streets and squares in key locations, during the months of July and August. Their goal?  To separately collect every empty drink can, while encouraging consumers to keep public spaces clean and raising awareness among locals and vacationers about the importance of a circular economy and proper waste disposal. 

To support the cause, around 100 small waste separation and recycling areas will be set up on the beaches, including special bins for the separate collection of drink cans, marked by a customized sail so that visitors can recognize the areas dedicated to the initiative.

*Municipalities involved in the initiative: Praia a Mare (CS) – Diamante (CS) – Amantea (CS) – Belmonte Calabro (CS) – Vibo Valentia – Briatico (VV) – Zambrone (VV) – Parghelia (VV) – Tropea (VV) – Pizzo Calabro (VV) -Brancaleone (RC) – Bianco (RC) – Soverato (CZ) – Stalettì (CZ).

Every Can Counts UK ensured recycling took centre stage at this year’s Red Bull Soapbox Race in London by building and racing the Every Can Counts soapbox!

Watch the video below to see our Soapbox journey in full, from building and testing through to race day itself:

Our recycling-themed soapbox highlighted the infinite recyclability of drink cans, and its part-can, part-plane shape illustrated the varied uses for aluminium as a material.

70 teams tackled the obstacle-filled course in front of 18,000 spectators at London’s Alexandra Palace – and our soapbox was one of those that made it to the finish line! But only just – the final jump proved to be too much for the steering and ended with a crash! Watch the race in full below:

Every Can Counts UK Programme Manager, Chris Latham-Warde piloted the soapbox with co-pilot Tom Giddings, Alupro’s Executive Director. Cyclone Works’ Paul Bacon and Lee Cox completed the 4-person team as the expert engineers behind the can-shaped racing machine.

To ensure our initiative’s recycling message could be easily embraced by the spectators at Ally Pally, our team brought can recycling cages to the event along with an enthusiastic team who roamed the grounds collecting cans and chatting to attendees about the importance of recycling their empty cans.

Every Can Counts in Serbia recreated the most famous Vinča miniature statue, known as “Vidovdanka”, using recycled aluminium and it’s now available in the souvenir shop of Belgrade’s National Museum!

The event took place on June 19^th at the Republic Square in Belgrade as a part of our Serbian team’s campaign and it was supported by the recycling start-up Solagro and the national platform Serbia Creates, which also initiated the project to restore the archeological site Vinca Belo brdo.

Svaka limenka se računa along with a Vinča themed Pixelata, recycling bins and the programme’s recycling ambassadors were there to showcase live the remarkable process of melting aluminium and pouring it into molds to create new Vinča statuettes. Through the combination of Vinča’s “Vidovdanka”, which is the epitome of the aesthetic achievements of the Southeast European culture, and aluminium, that is a permanent material and infinitely recyclable, the event’s purpose was to raise awareness that recycling and sustainability are two of the main factors that drive the social and technological progress of our civilization.

It was in Vinča, 2.500 years before the construction of the great pyramids in Giza, that metalworking began for the first time in history. During this event, visitors had the chance to see how a few recycled aluminium cans can be used to create a miniature masterpiece that is based on the finest arts and crafts ever made by the Vinča culture.

‘’The Vinča statuette made of recycled aluminum cans symbolizes not only knowledge that has been passed down for generations and centuries, but also works as a reminder that we should continue on the same path as our ancestors, using new civilizational achievements, so we need to recycle ‘’ said Jelena Petljanski Kiš, Board Member of Every Can Counts Europe and added: “It is an exceptional honor for us to cooperate with the Vinca Belo brdo site, where the first traces of metal processing in the world were found. «Throughout history, metals have been melted down and turned into new objects. Today, cans, which are made of aluminum, can also be recycled. In Europe, 76% of cans are recycled, but we want to reach 100%.”

‘’The Vinca Belo Brdo site – one of the most significant examples of European and world cultural heritage – has been neglected for decades. At the initiative of the Prime Minister’s Office and the National Platform Serbia Creates, the revitalization of this site was declared the Capital Project of the Government of the Republic of Serbia, thus taking the first step not only in preserving but also presenting the treasure only 20 kilometers from downtown Belgrade. As a center of Neolithic sites throughout Serbia, this is a symbol of unity, creativity and innovation that the people of Vinča left us as a legacy,” said Bojana Višekruna, advisor to the Prime Minister of Serbia for creative industries and science.

Everybody knows that if you want to experience heavy metal music, Download Festival is where you need to be. Running from Wednesday to Sunday, this iconic five day festival took place at Donnington Park and marks the sixth year that Every Can Counts UK have taken their can cages and backpacks to the spiritual home of rock. 

The Every Can Counts staff set up their brand new gazebo in the Village which saw heavy footfall and allowed for greater engagement with the crowds as they travelled to see some of the headlining acts. Our iconic can cages were also set up outside the main arena which led to plenty of photo opportunities for the festival goers and a greater number of cans being recycled. Our PixelCan display of the Download Dog was also a massive hit over the festival weekend, with plenty of people willing to take part in the set up of the installation. It acted as a prime photo opportunity which resulted in our team having more engaged conversations with a consistent flow of people.

Our recycling ambassadors received a high level of engagement, with festival-goers particularly keen on getting their hands on our recycling rewards. This year we gave away T-shirts, keyrings made from recycled cans and temporary tattoos in exchange for bags of recycled cans. This initiative inspired festival goers to recycle their cans and resulted in a fantastic level of engagement.  

Overall, the events saw a successful weekend for Every Can Counts and we are looking forward to returning next year, bigger and better than ever, for the 20th anniversary of Download Festival!

Following last year’s successful recycling tour, Every Can Counts is doubling down on its efforts with an inspiring awareness campaign that goes beyond the borders of Europe. At the same time, it releases interesting findings from its new research into people’s behaviours on recycling.

For the second year in a row, the “on the go” recycling campaign of Every Can Counts returns, bigger and better! If there was one core message from the Recycling Tour 2021, it’s this: People care about the environment more than ever and want to more actively participate in recycling. Last year’s inspiring, positive embrace of the programme’s recycling ambassadors empowered Every Can Counts to double down on this year’s efforts and expand its activities beyond the European borders. Therefore, for World Environment Day 2022, the tour proudly adds Brazil and Colombia, in a dynamic bid to spread the message about a more circular economy in Latin America as well.

The International Recycling Tour’s goal is to remind people that keeping public outdoor spaces clean is a collaborative effort. Small everyday acts, like proper waste disposal, can help us all towards a more sustainable living and a healthier planet. With this in mind, more than 100 recycling ambassadors will roam parks, cities, and beaches, donning their vibrant backpacks in the following countries: Austria, Brazil, Colombia, Czech Republic, France, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Montenegro, Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia, Spain, and the United Kingdom. Their mission? To encourage people to keep public outdoor spaces clean and recycle their drink cans wherever they are.

In addition to outdoor games, dance acts, and online competitions, people in several locations will have the opportunity to admire the head-turning Pixelata, a trademark installation of the programme that fuses art, environmental awareness, and guest participation. Empty drink cans are used to form pixelated images in large format, creating impressive murals to be admired from afar, while communicating innovatively key recycling messages. Another popular Instagram backdrop is the iconic #EveryCanCounts Rainbow, an installation made of 2,500 recycled drink cans.

“This very special day dedicated to the environment offers two unique opportunities for us. One is to hold, for the second year in a row, our “on the go” drink can recycling campaign in more than 20 locations at the same time. And the second is to communicate the insightful findings of our study on recycling habits and attitudes in Europe”, says Vital Beauvois, Chairman of Every Can Counts.

New survey: 9 in 10 Europeans want companies to improve the recyclability of their drink packaging

A vast majority of Europeans said protecting the environment and recycling is important but not enough is being done to address the current environmental challenges, according to a survey performed in 14 European countries by the LUCID polling agency in association with the Every Can Counts initiative, in view of World Environment Day 2022.

The survey reveals that European citizens want more to be done to protect the environment (91%) and although there is a sense of individual responsibility, the onus is first and foremost on companies to improve the recyclability of their packaging. 87% of respondents said that companies should only use packaging that is infinitely recyclable, while 89% agree that companies should be held responsible for the packaging they select, and should only use fully recyclable packaging. Comparatively, less than 7 out of 10 believe consumers should be held responsible for the packaging they buy. 

When asked about necessary initiatives to protect the environment, 69% of people prioritised reducing waste, 63% encouraging individuals to recycle more, followed by initiatives around reversing habitat loss, replacing fossil fuel with renewable energy and discouraging companies  (through taxation or otherwise) from using products that damage the environment. Reducing air travel, along with meat and dairy consumption appear necessary to less than a third of respondents.

Recycling is challenging; consumers would like more support

Amongst the more than 12,800 people interviewed, just 52% always recycle their drink cans when at home. Recycling rates drop dramatically when out of the home, with only 33% of Europeans placing their drink cans in recycling bins when at work, and 30% when out and about.

It thus comes as no surprise that respondents call for better recycling infrastructure, as 52% would like more recycling bins in public areas and 50% favour implementing deposit return schemes. To support recycling efforts, 53% of citizens want their countries to only use fully recyclable packaging.

These findings are complemented by public perception of sustainable packaging. For the majority of consumers (60%), a sustainable packaging is made from 100% recycled materials, while about half say it’s infinitely recyclable. However, the insights also reveal a lack of consumer knowledge as only 19% say “small and light to transport” make a packaging sustainable.  “Lightweight and low-volume reduces energy used for transport and storage, thereby reducing the environmental footprint of drink packaging. Because they’re light and infinitely recyclable, drink cans are one of the most energy-efficient materials to recycle,” explains David Van Heuverswyn, Director of Every Can Counts Europe.

“Drink cans recycle forever. This is the main message of our tour and the reason why we are working to inspire behaviour change and help reach 100% can recycling in Europe and beyond. This ambitious target can only be reached if consumers, brands, event organisers and local communities join forces to recycle every drink can and build together a more sustainable planet.” he says.

See here the full report of the survey.