The administration of the bottles and containers recycling scheme (known as BCRS) has improved, but issues concerning costs and logistics for catering establishments remain a concern, officials from the company which runs the scheme were told on Thursday.

Members of the Association of Catering Establishments (ACE) said at a public meeting with the company that there needed to be more frequent collections from establishments and more reverse vending machines (RVM) needed to be installed.

ACE vice president Matthew Pace said the association was not consulted when the scheme was about to be launched four months go. The scheme had created several logistical issues for caterers but problems had eased following talks, he said. 

BCRS offers a once-weekly pick-up service from catering establishments. They can return up to 25 bags of bottles a month. More pickups can be requested at a cost of €3.20 per bag in Malta and €4.50 per bag in Gozo.

Asked why there was this discrepancy, BCRS director Maria Micallef pointed to ferry costs. 

Marvin Gauci, one of the ACE members present, said costs for extra pickups or for taking bottles to an RVM made it harder to run a business.  

Another restaurateur, Roven Zammit Apap, said that the 25 bags that can be collected for free were not enough.  

Julia Galea, who owns a Valletta establishment had similar concerns. “I return seven to ten bags a week in winter let alone in summer,” he said.  

After filling the 25 bags he can return for free every month, he uses RVMs, but  there is only one in Valletta which is not nearly enough, he said. 

At the time when the scheme was launched, catering establishments only had a single free pick-up per month, where they could return twenty bags.  

Catering establishments can also use reverse vending machines. BCRS CEO Edward Chetcuti said.  

He said that BCRS would be installing 10 new RVMs across Malta and Gozo. They would be bigger than the ones currently in use, taking far more bottles before filling. Staff members will be on site to empty the machine once they are full.     

Since the bottle-return scheme kicked off four months ago, more than 42 million empty containers have been recovered, with more than 1,600 tonnes exported to recycling companies in Europe.  

On average, some 400,000 bottles are collected each day, with the bulk, 70 per cent, mostly plastic.