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Home > Beverage > Recycling Information > Alcohol Products

Return all your drink containers in one-stop to any Encorp Return-It Depot for deposit refund.

Return-It Depots authorized by Encorp Pacific will accept all drink containers, including alcohol containers. You can expect a full refund on deposit-bearing containers like wine, spirits, liqueurs, as well as non-refillable beer, cider and cooler bottles. See the chart below for the deposit amounts.

Beer cans, standard brown beer bottles and some clear refillable containers are excluded from the Return-It system. (See FAQ for details.) Please note which are acceptable in the Return-It system and which are not.

Important: Home brew beer and wine bottles are not acceptable as they are not a part of the deposit system.

Alcohol Container Recycling
Container Example Container Type Size Deposit Value Recycling Cost How to Recycle Them Description What they are Recycled Into
Plastic 0 - 1 L 10.0 ¢ Cost of recycling is included in price Caps off, labels on The familiar plastic soft drink and water bottles, including coolers and some spirits. Containers ma Over 75% of the plastic bottles sold are returned. The bottles are power-washed, then shredded, then power-washed again. From there, the shredded material is sold to companies who pull, stretch and meld the shreds into fibre for new bottles and buckets. Recycling plastics uses about 1/3 less energy than manufacturing new plastic.
Glass 0 - 1 L 10.0 ¢ Cost of recycling is included in price Caps off, labels on The everyday glass juice and beverage bottles, as well as wine, spirits, imported beer and coolers. Of all the glass bottles sold in BC, 93% are returned. These bottles are ground down into small pieces called "cullet" and used in the manufacturing of a variety of things such as fibreglass insulation, sandblasting material and even sand for golf-course sandtraps. Ground glass can also be added to asphalt in the making of new roads.
Plastic > 1 L 20.0 ¢ Cost of recycling is included in price Caps off, labels on The familiar plastic soft drink and water bottles, including coolers and some spirits. Containers ma Over 75% of the plastic bottles sold are returned. The bottles are power-washed, then shredded, then power-washed again. From there, the shredded material is sold to companies who pull, stretch and meld the shreds into fibre for new bottles and buckets. Recycling plastics uses about 1/3 less energy than manufacturing new plastic.
Glass > 1 L 20.0 ¢ Cost of recycling is included in price Caps off, labels on The everyday glass juice and beverage bottles, as well as wine, spirits, imported beer and coolers. Of all the glass bottles sold in BC, 93% are returned. These bottles are ground down into small pieces called "cullet" and used in the manufacturing of a variety of things such as fibreglass insulation, sandblasting material and even sand for golf-course sandtraps. Ground glass can also be added to asphalt in the making of new roads.
Bag-In-A-Box > 1 L 20.0 ¢ Cost of recycling is included in price Leave Bag in Box Large "bags" of wine in a cardboard carton, usually with a spigot for in-fridge use. Both the bag an The plastic in these containers is separated out and can be mixed with other types of plastic to make park benches, bins and other sturdy products

For a list of all Excluded Alcohol Containers click here >

To view the Liquor Brands Registry List click here>

 

For other inquiries regarding products not managed by Encorp Pacific, please visit rcbc.bc.ca/recyclepedia or Download our BC Recyclepedia Smart Phone App for IPhone and Android

Login Access

Note: Brand owners should login at the Brand Owners' Homepage instead. Return-It Electronics Obligated Producers should log in from the Obligated Producer Registration & Membership ID's page.