The most active users of Rinki eco take-back points in Finland are in Kolari – the total packaging recycling rate in Finland as a whole is as high as 71 percent

The most active users of Rinki eco take-back points live in Kolari, Kimitoön and Vimpeli. The recycling rate of packaging in Finland continues to grow, and the summer months are the busiest time of year for eco take-back points. The most popular eco take-back points in Finland are located in Joensuu, Rovaniemi and Mäntsälä. The packaging waste collected for recycling from Rinki eco take-back points last year would fill the Hartwall Arena in Helsinki almost seven times. Companies who bear producer responsibility are responsible for recycling packaging in Finland.

The most active users of Rinki eco take-back points live in Kolari, Kimitoön and Vimpeli, according to figures from Finnish Packaging Recycling RINKI Ltd’s annual statistics of eco take-back point collections. Rinki maintains a nationwide network of more than 1,850 eco take-back points for consumers to take their packaging waste to free of charge. The materials in recycled packaging are reused in the manufacture of new products and packaging.

In Kolari, consumers brought a total of 31 kilos of packaging waste per resident to Rinki eco take-back points in 2020. This figure was 29 kilos per resident in Kimitoön, and 25 kilos in Vimpeli. Residents of Pelkosenniemi (25 kg) and Mynämäki (24 kg) also made it into the top five.

– Collection volumes vary greatly from season to season: they rise sharply in the summer, then decrease in the autumn and rise again at Christmas. The pattern is the same everywhere in Finland. Municipalities with a lot of second homes also show higher figures due to people spending more time there, explains Rinki’s Operative Director Pertti Tammivuori.

The most popular individual eco take-back points in Finland are located in Joensuu, Rovaniemi and Mäntsälä. In 2020, 309 tonnes of packaging waste were collected from the busiest Rinki eco take-back point, which is located at the Prisma supermarket in Joensuu. The eco take-back point at the Prisma supermarket in Rovaniemi came in second with 272 tonnes, and third place, with 226 tonnes, went to Citymarket’s Rinki eco take-back point in Mäntsälä. As a point of reference, the average amount of packaging waste collected from an eco take-back point was just over 31 tonnes in 2020.

Finnish people are keen to sort and recycle their packaging waste. In 2019, the overall recycling rate for packaging waste in Finland was 71 percent. Collection volumes have increased significantly in recent years. A total of 57,800 tonnes of packaging waste was collected at Rinki eco take-back points in 2020, compared to 22,900 tonnes in 2016.

In relative terms, the amount of plastic packaging waste collected has increased the most: from about 1,200 tonnes in 2016 to 12,500 tonnes last year. Measured in tonnes, carton collection has grown the most. Approximately 27,000 tonnes of carton packaging was collected in 2020 (approx. 10,000 tonnes in 2016), 10,500 tonnes of glass packaging (approx. 7,400 tonnes in 2016) and about 6,000 tonnes of metal (more than 5,000 tonnes in 2017).

– Packaging waste collected for recycling from Rinki eco take-back points last year would fill the Hartwall Arena in Helsinki, floor to ceiling, almost seven times, says Tammivuori.

In Finland, the companies that pack products or import packed products are responsible for recycling packaging waste. Companies subject to producer responsibility have a statutory obligation to organise the collection and recycling of packaging waste and they also pay the resulting costs.

Rinki’s ongoing spring campaign raises awareness of the producer responsibility and reminds everyone that recycling is a team effort: companies take care of costs while consumers, in turn, are responsible for taking clean, empty packaging to collection points – either a residential point or to the nearest Rinki eco take-back point.

TOP 10: The most active users of Rinki eco take-back points in 2020 (kilos of packaging waste/resident).

[table id=153 /]

For more information, please contact

Heli Satuli, Communications Manager, email heli.satuli@rinkiin.fi, tel.  +358 44 320 3622
Campaign website: https://rinkiin.fi/en/packaging-recycles/

What can I take to a packaging collection point?

Finnish Packaging Recycling RINKI Ltd maintains a network of more than 1,850 Rinki eco take-back points in Finland. Carton and glass packaging as well as small metal objects are accepted at all Rinki eco take-back points. More than 650 eco take-back points also have a container for plastic packaging. You can find your nearest Rinki eco take-back point at rinkiin.fi/for-households/rinki-eco-take-back-points/.

Households can take packaging waste sorted according to Rinki’s national guidelines to Rinki eco take-back points. These instructions are available at rinkiin.fi/for-households/sorting-instructions/. The instructions can also be found on collection containers.

Finnish Packaging Recycling RINKI Ltd

Finnish Packaging Recycling RINKI Ltd is a non-profit service company owned by Finnish industry and retail trade and founded in 1997. We provide companies with effective and sustainable solutions concerning the execution of producer responsibility for packaging. More than 4,500 companies that bear producer responsibility for packaging manage their obligations by belonging to Rinki. For consumers, we offer a nationwide network of more than 1,850 Rinki eco take-back points for the collection of packaging and the recycling of glass packaging waste. www.rinkiin.fi