The citizens of Belgrade will find it even easier to recycle drink cans as the fifth smart can crusher is now proudly featured in the heart of the city’s center.
Located in front of the IDEA London store in Belgrade downtown, this smart compact machine offers a win-win solution to can recycling. Citizens get to reduce waste, preserve valuable resources, and at the same time win points and discounts for their help.
Belgrade’s mayor Zoran Radojičić said that such initiatives provide citizens with the opportunity to actively engage in environmental protection. And also, ensure a safer future for the coming generations.
‘With initiatives like this, we manage to raise awareness about the importance of recycling. At the same time, we tackle two major global challenges. Saving valuable resources and reducing waste volume – using a technologically advanced solution. For us, it’s of utmost importance to promote recycling through such projects,’ said Radojičić.
The director of the German Development Agency (GIZ) in Serbia has also invited the public to contribute to environmental protection by using the innovative drink can recycling solution. ‘In order to advance our sustainable development goals, it is vital to leverage the full potential of digitalization and join forces in all sectors. Therefore, the German Development Agency supports this initiative which is implemented in cooperation with the private sector and the City of Belgrade and addresses the challenge of environmental protection with the support of new technologies. Every can counts and I hope that many people will join this campaign. And also find the motivation to contribute to a better future with their actions,’ said Funke.
The use of a smart can crusher is easy, quick, and simple. In addition to waste reduction, it brings various benefits to anyone using it in an IDEA Organic store. Users can find the relevant app at: https://solagro.app. After inserting cans in the smart crusher, the user gets a unique QR code and collects points. These points unlock discounts on selected products. The Solagro platform can help citizens to find the closest location to a machine. Also, provides information about the recycling process, and tracks the number of recycled cans.
Each recycled can gives 10 points, and depending on the number of collected points, the following discounts can be had. 50 points offer a 10% discount voucher for an item of choice. 100 points generate a voucher for a 20% discount and 200 points for a 25% discount. Citizens can use vouchers in all IDEA stores, Roda retail outlets, and Mercator hypermarkets.
Smart can crushers in Belgrade are deployed with the support of our programme in Serbia, Svaka limenka se računa, and the German Development Cooperation, implemented by GIZ within the ‘Smart Can Collection System in Cities’ project, jointly financed by Germany’s Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), Ball Packaging Europe, Mercator-S and Solagro.