Maybe you’re too young to remember how children all over Malta used to look for empty glass bottles to return them to shops for small change to buy sweets. Alas, over the years with the advent of plastic bottles and all things disposable, the system of returnable glass bottles has fallen out of favour.

Though, for Malta’s eco-conscious winery, Emmanuel Delicata Winemaker, nothing has changed.

Instead of tossing tradition into the bin, the Delicata winery has continued reusing glass bottles and keeps on running its own wine-bottle collection system that’s been going for ages.

Thousands of so-called ‘empties’ are picked up by the Delicata crew from shops, bars and restaurants every day, a practice that helps keeping Malta green.

Unfortunately, not all customers are aware of Delicata’s recollection system and a growing number of people don’t always bring back their bottles to the shop.

Especially, the new generation of millennial wine drinkers seems somewhat unaware of how it works, although it’s straightforward.

You’re charged a refundable deposit of €0.25 for each returnable bottle purchased and this quarter is reimbursed entirely when the empty bottle is given back in at the next shopping.

Delicata collects the winery’s environmentally-friendly returnable bottles to reuse them for numerous cycles until the end of their lifespan, after which they are being recycled.

Annually, the Delicata winery saves a total of 550,000kg of new glass, representing a carbon dioxide emission reduction equivalent to the effect of taking at least 50 cars off the road for a whole year.

The wine bottle recollection system isn’t imposed by law but organised on a purely voluntary basis so as to reduce and ultimately recycle as much glass waste as possible.

In stark contrast, none of the millions of imported wine bottles are collected for refilling. At best, they get recycled, which still increases the carbon footprint of their consumers. That’s because recycling only is a less effective eco-friendly way than the recollection system run by Delicata.

The beauty is that, with a little help from wine drinkers, retailers and catering establishments, we can champion this system in Malta. It makes perfect sense for our small archipelago, where distances are short, making it relatively easy to collect, unlike in larger countries where handling returns is logistically more difficult and saves less resources.

Next time you are about to buy wine, you might want to also consider its environmental impact.

Georges Meekers is Delicata’s head of marketing and an award-winning wine writer.