Beverage companies have started raising their prices in response to a controversial hike in administrative fees imposed by the Beverage Container Refund Scheme (BCRS).
At least two local drinks producers, H2Only and Huskie, said they had to increase prices of some of their drinks products as a result.
It follows BCRS’ move to raise fees related to the not-for-profit beverage collection and recycle scheme.
Last week, Prime Minister Robert Abela slammed the company for increasing its tariffs for processing bottles and warned that if it leads to an increase in prices, he would be “on the side of the people”.
H2Only, which distributes purified drinking water, said it has increased some of its container prices by 10 cents each.
A spokesperson confirmed that all products under three litres would see a 10c price increase due to the higher administrative fees. However, the company said its larger products were unaffected.
“This hasn’t really impacted us much, given that these are not our most popular products,” the spokesperson said.
Jean Bickle, co-founder of Huskie Craft Beer, said that while the company fully complies with BCRS requirements, it has been forced to increase prices due to rising fees imposed by the scheme to cover administrative costs.
“Fees disproportionately impact small producers like us, and to add insult to injury, there is absolutely no transparency on how these fees are being distributed between packaging types, nor why a scheme which is supposedly performing better than expected should add further costs,” Bickle said.
As a result, all of Huskie’s glass bottle products will see a two-cent price increase over the next month.
“Our price increase will reflect only the 2c admin fee that has been further imposed on us and not a cent more,” said Bickle.
Their keg prices will remain unchanged.
“By law, the scheme should not place an unfair burden on SMEs, yet BCRS compliance costs us significantly more per unit than large competitors,” Bickle said.
He added that Huskie had absorbed rising raw material costs for years, but the additional financial strain imposed by BCRS could push local brewers out of the market.
Bickle urged policymakers to reassess what he described as the “unfair burden” BCRS places on SMEs before small producers disappear, leaving only mass-market products available.
Rate increases vary by material, with a 54% hike per bottle for coloured glass containers and a 143% rise in fees for aluminium containers. Costs to process plastic and steel containers will also increase, ranging from 62% to 111%.
The company attributed the increase to rising operational costs.
“Operational expenses have continued to grow,” BCRS said on its website. “These include higher collection rates, enhanced service quality measures and rising compliance costs. Additionally, global recyclable waste prices fell sharply in 2023 and early 2024, further straining finances.”
The increase in fees, BCRS said, would help cover these costs, improve infrastructure and enhance recycling efficiency while reducing environmental impact.
The company also announced plans to step up enforcement efforts with more monitoring and compliance checks in the coming weeks.
The fee increases are separate from the 10c deposit consumers pay per bottle or can, which remains unchanged. Instead, they apply to the fees that producers and importers pay for each beverage container placed on the market.