Drinks wholesalers - what you must do
It was announced on 7 June 2023 that the launch of Scotland’s Deposit Return Scheme will be delayed until at least October 2025. The full statement is available to view on the Scottish Government website: www.gov.scot/news/deposit-return/
Who is a wholesaler?
You are a drinks wholesaler if you market, offer for sale or sell the types of drinks in containers covered by the Regulations:
- that you have not produced or imported yourself, and
- are not selling to consumers, but instead sell to a retailer or other business that will sell to consumers.
What type of containers are covered by the scheme?
The Deposit Return Scheme applies to drinks in Scotland packaged in a single-use container made from PET plastic, glass, steel or aluminium sized between 100ml* and 3 litres.
* A proposed change to the size of container in-scope of Scotland’s Deposit Return Scheme (50ml changing to 100ml) was announced by the Minister for Green Skills, Circular Economy and Biodiversity on 20 April 2023. This change to the scheme is subject to regulations to amend the Deposit Return Scheme for Scotland Regulations 2020 being laid in, and approved by, the Scottish Parliament.
What wholesalers must do?
As a wholesaler you must:
- only sell drinks to customers in Scotland that a registered producer has made available for sale in Scotland;
- charge the deposit when marketing, offering for sale or selling a drink in Scotland or to a customer in Scotland;
- make it clear to the customer that the drink is part of the scheme and a deposit applies;
- clearly display the price of the deposit (20p) in any place that a drink is displayed for sale.
If you also sell drinks that are not part of Scotland’s Deposit Return Scheme or are not intended for sale to customers in Scotland, you must clearly display information at point of sale to show:
- the drinks are not part of the scheme;
- the empty containers from these drinks cannot be returned in exchange for the 20p deposit.