Sudden price hike on bottled water leads to surprising discovery: ‘I'm being penalised if I recycle at home?’
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One of the most important sustainable living practices we can do is reducing, reusing and recycling—especially when it comes to packaging materials, such as plastic bottles and cans.
To get us all into recycling, state governments have introduced container deposit schemes.
However, it seems Aussies weren’t prepared for the way this was going to affect their budget.
The new container deposit scheme rewards recyclers with a 10-cent refund for every can and bottle they dispose of.
But one disgruntled shopper complained on social media about the sudden price hike on a 20-pack of Nu Pure Spring Water bottles, which he bought for $10.50.
'I paid $7.50 just nine days ago,' he said.
'That's a 40 per cent price rise in just over a week.'
He posted two images of his receipts from different Woolworths stores in Melbourne, showing the price of the water was $7.50 on October 27, then surged to $10.50 on Sunday.
Some users told the shopper to drink tap water instead and stop ‘whinging about a couple of dollars.’ However, other users said the higher price was likely because of Victoria’s new Container Deposit Scheme (CDS).
Victoria’s CDS was launched last 1 November, which aimed to increase recycling while providing consumers with a ‘convenient and accessible’ way to dispose of their used products.
Victoria was the latest state to implement CDS. South Australia implemented its own CDS in 1977, quickly followed by NSW in 2017, Queensland in 2018, and Western Australia in 2020.
A spokesperson for the Victorian government said, ‘Victoria's Container Deposit Scheme is funded by the beverage industry. It will reduce litter by up to half and contribute to the circular economy through increased recycling.’
A Woolworths spokesperson confirmed this was the reason for the price hike, saying it had been ‘working through the implementation of the container deposit scheme with our supply partners’.
'The shelf price has increased to $10.50 in line with the shelf price in other states that have already adopted container deposit schemes, which has been communicated to customers in our stores,' they said regarding the Nu Pure Spring Water pack.
The spokesperson also added that the product would be available at a special rate 'over the months ahead'.
Despite the consequences of the well-meaning effort, some could not help but air their disappointment.
One customer complained, 'I thought I'd like a refund scheme instead of just recycling all at home, but now I'm being penalised if I recycle at home and drinks are more expensive? I don't like it anymore.'
Other supermarket giants are also taking the step towards changing waste management. In a previous story, Coles supermarket began installing a new type of machine to insert empty drinks and receive a 10-cent refund instantly. Read more about the story here.
What do you think about the story? Have you tried recycling using the CDS? Share your thoughts and experience in the comments below!
To get us all into recycling, state governments have introduced container deposit schemes.
However, it seems Aussies weren’t prepared for the way this was going to affect their budget.
The new container deposit scheme rewards recyclers with a 10-cent refund for every can and bottle they dispose of.
But one disgruntled shopper complained on social media about the sudden price hike on a 20-pack of Nu Pure Spring Water bottles, which he bought for $10.50.
The price increase of Nu Pure Spring Water bottles sparked outrage on social media. Credit: u/farqueue2 / Reddit
'I paid $7.50 just nine days ago,' he said.
'That's a 40 per cent price rise in just over a week.'
He posted two images of his receipts from different Woolworths stores in Melbourne, showing the price of the water was $7.50 on October 27, then surged to $10.50 on Sunday.
Some users told the shopper to drink tap water instead and stop ‘whinging about a couple of dollars.’ However, other users said the higher price was likely because of Victoria’s new Container Deposit Scheme (CDS).
Victoria’s CDS was launched last 1 November, which aimed to increase recycling while providing consumers with a ‘convenient and accessible’ way to dispose of their used products.
Victoria was the latest state to implement CDS. South Australia implemented its own CDS in 1977, quickly followed by NSW in 2017, Queensland in 2018, and Western Australia in 2020.
A spokesperson for the Victorian government said, ‘Victoria's Container Deposit Scheme is funded by the beverage industry. It will reduce litter by up to half and contribute to the circular economy through increased recycling.’
A Woolworths spokesperson confirmed this was the reason for the price hike, saying it had been ‘working through the implementation of the container deposit scheme with our supply partners’.
'The shelf price has increased to $10.50 in line with the shelf price in other states that have already adopted container deposit schemes, which has been communicated to customers in our stores,' they said regarding the Nu Pure Spring Water pack.
The spokesperson also added that the product would be available at a special rate 'over the months ahead'.
Despite the consequences of the well-meaning effort, some could not help but air their disappointment.
One customer complained, 'I thought I'd like a refund scheme instead of just recycling all at home, but now I'm being penalised if I recycle at home and drinks are more expensive? I don't like it anymore.'
Other supermarket giants are also taking the step towards changing waste management. In a previous story, Coles supermarket began installing a new type of machine to insert empty drinks and receive a 10-cent refund instantly. Read more about the story here.
What do you think about the story? Have you tried recycling using the CDS? Share your thoughts and experience in the comments below!
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that’s all I drink.i can’t imagine paying for water it’d cost me a fortune the amount I drink in a day.
and yes I do drink loads of tap water every day. Always have always will.
