Big change at Coca-Cola: Bottles will soon look different in Germany

Created: 2022-02-12, 2:40 p.m

By: Marc Dimitriu

Coca-Cola changes its bottle design.

© imago stock&people/Waldmüller

The US company Coca-Cola has announced a major change to its bottles.

The reason for this is EU regulations.

Munich - The bottle design of the brands of the US company Coca-Cola will soon be subject to major changes.

According to a press release, closures that remain firmly attached to the bottle after opening will be used in the future.

New EU directive changes Coca-Cola bottles

The reason for the change to the cap of the bottles is the EU directive on single-use plastic products, which requires beverage manufacturers to ensure that the caps remain firmly attached to the bottle to protect the environment by 2024.

“In Germany, 97 percent of non-returnable PET bottles are already being returned via the deposit system, and around 95 percent of them even come with a lid.

But in the future we also want to recycle the last few lids and are showing a pioneering spirit here in Germany with the conversion as one of the first countries in Coca-Cola in Europe," says Dr.

Stefan Kunerth, Technical Operations Director Western Europe at The Coca-Cola Company.

According to the press release, the aim is for all German plants to convert their production to bottles with the new closures by January 2024.

"Due to the gradual conversion resulting from the size of the production network, non-returnable PET bottles with the previous type of cap as well as with the new caps can be found on the market for a while."

Video: Exactly analyzed: This is what happens to the body when you drink a can of cola

Coca-Cola: The cap should remain firmly attached to the neck of the bottle

But what exactly does the change look like?

The cap should remain firmly attached to the neck of the bottle when it is screwed on.

The reason for this is that the tight closure should make it even easier to collect and recycle all the components of the bottle.

The caps of the new bottles then say: "Let me take it!"

This is what the new cap on the Coca-Cola bottles looks like.

© Coca-Cola Germany

The cap should simply be left on the bottle while drinking.

Before handing it in at the deposit machine, the bottle should simply be closed again.

“It remains the same great taste and drinking experience that people have come to expect from our drinks.

We are proud to be one of the first manufacturers in Germany to start implementing new lids to improve the recycling cycle two years before the end of the transition period of the new EU requirement," says Tim Kolbe, Senior Brand Manager at Coca-Cola Germany.

But will the new bottles be found everywhere in the supermarkets?

Maybe not at Edeka.

Because the supermarket announces the price war to the big soft drink manufacturers.

After Pepsi, products from Coca-Cola are now threatening to disappear from the shelves of the German retail chain.

Coca-Cola: New design to save plastic

Coca-Cola is gradually starting to switch to the new lids in other EU countries as well.

"Because improving the collection and recycling of packaging waste is a top priority for Coca-Cola." The new closures are intended to avoid packaging waste.

The company wants to use the changeover in Germany to reduce the amount of material used in the bottles overall.

With the new closures, up to 1.37 grams of plastic can be saved per bottle.

Coca-Cola also has another unusual idea to save plastic.

According

to a 2020 study by Break Free From Plastic, Coca-Cola and its sub-brands are the world's largest producer of plastic waste for the third time in a row,

Also interesting: This is what cola does in the body* after you drink it.

A rollercoaster ride of the blood sugar cycle and feelings of happiness: Drinking a can of Coke causes the body to react in many ways.