Beginning on March 1st, 2025, Consignaction, the Québec container deposit return program, will include all plastic beverage containers from 100 millilitres to two litres.
The program continues to offer citizens an “accessible, fast, modern, efficient, and ecological recovery service” for recyclable waste reduction.
The Association Québécoise de recuperation des contenants de boissons (AQRCB)—the beverage container recovery association, is the designated management body of Recyc-Québec that oversees the program and acts on behalf of beverage producers in the recovery, reuse, recycling and recovery of beverage containers in Québec.
As part of its mandate, the AQRCB manages the overall deposit system in the province and “develops programs that maximize recovery, working together with all partners” by participating in the “circular economy and fight against climate change.”
Currently, the program accepts all aluminum beverage containers from 100 mL to two litres and ready-to-drink beverage cans, including juices, sparkling and flavoured waters, beer, and cocktails. Standard deposit rates are set at 10 cents for all containers, except for glass bottles and containers 500 mL or more, which are consigned at 25 cents.
The second expansion phase will bring the total number of plastic beverage containers included in the program up to 1.5 billion containers.
The Consignaction website explained that “consigning your beverage containers is a real gesture for the environment. Sorting beverage containers by material allows optimal recovery.” It significantly relies on consumers using the program to avoid having plastic beverages enter landfills.
In June 2022, the Québec government issued a regulation mandating that the Québec deposit system be modernized.
The establishment of the program has been gradually rolled out to accommodate the large volume of beverage containers and the expansion of the project. The first phase of these updates was introduced on November 1, 2023.
The third and final phase is scheduled for March 1, 2027, and will include all 100 mL glass ready-to-drink containers up to two litres, such as bottles of wine, cider, spirits, and all other beverages. Multi-layer cardboard ready-to-drink containers will then also be included with the same size restrictions.
The current list of consigned beverage containers and their deposit amounts can be found here: https://consignaction.ca/liste-des-contenants-de-boisson-consignes/.
A map of collection locations can be found at: https://consignaction.ca/carte-des-lieux-de-retour/.
