How the Coca‑Cola system is scaling refillable bottles around the world

2026-07-24 2:50 min Sustainability & Circular Economy

The Coca-Cola CompanyAtlanta, GA, United States

Bottles have been an iconic symbol of The Coca‑Cola Company since the first contour bottle was introduced in 1916. Today, they’re still the preferred choice for millions, with an added benefit: many can help reduce packaging waste.

Refillable bottles are designed for multiple reuse cycles, with actual performance varying based on the packaging material, design, and operating conditions.
Coca‑Cola and its bottling partners are expanding refillable glass and refillable PET bottles in markets where they can bring business and environmental benefits, offering packaging options for consumers.
The Coca‑Cola system is investing in local infrastructure and marketing campaigns to continue to expand refillable packaging availability for customers and consumers.

Empty But Full of Potential

The Coca‑Cola system offers refillable packaging across several markets, accounting for 14% of total beverage volume in 2024. The company continues to work to expand refillable offerings worldwide in partnership with many of their bottling partners.

Refillable packaging requires local collection infrastructure, up-front investment and ongoing support from customers and consumers.

Many bottlers are simplifying the refilling process by using a standardized, universal bottle for multiple brands. In Latin America, bottling partner Arca Continental recently invested $23 million to produce universal bottles and family-size returnable packaging in Guayaquil, Ecuador. The new line optimizes water and energy usage and can process 400 bottles per minute¹.

Moving Ahead, Locally Led

For more than a century, refillable glass bottles have been available in many French cafes, hotels and restaurants. In 2023, bottling partner Coca‑Cola Europacific Partners (CCEP) France became the first soft drink supplier to offer its full range of beverage products in refillable bottles, including Coca‑Cola, Sprite, Fanta, Fuze Tea and other brands. These are collected, cleaned, and refilled at CCEP’s facility in Grigny (outside Paris), using one of Europe’s fastest and most flexible glass bottle line, which was inaugurated in 2025, following a 146 million-euro investment to modernize and expand plant capacity.

Local conditions and the availability of supporting infrastructure are driving further expansion, including:

Introduction of the universal refillable bottle in Germany, South Africa and Vietnam
A new, state-of-the-art glass bottle production line from Thailand bottler HaadThip Limited
A 12-million-euro expansion of refillable packaging line in Austria from Coca‑Cola HBC
Consumer campaigns in Brazil and Bolivia highlighting the benefits of refillable packaging

At the same time, high-profile marketing campaigns are highlighting the convenience and environmental benefits to consumers. The company continues to make a long-term investment in this important part of their packaging portfolio.

_______________

^*Note: Reusable packaging includes refillable glass bottles, refillable PET bottles and refillable plastic packages over 3L. All other packaging types, such as coffee cups, fountain cups from dispensed solutions, food packaging, and non-fountain items are excluded. Business to business (B2B) and non-ready to drink sales are also excluded.

¹ Source: Article Arca Continental invirtió US$ 23 millones en una nueva línea de envases retornables, published by Forbes Ecuador in December 13, 2024.

_______________

www.coca-colacompany.com

PETnology's Resource Guide

comPETence center

The comPETence center provides your organisation with a dynamic, cost effective way to promote your products and services.

Find out more