Denmark is making reuse the norm: learnings from the study visit to Copenhagen and Aarhus

In early March, Zero Waste Europe brought together over 70 city representatives, solution providers, producers, packaging experts, funders and waste practitioners from all over Europe for a two-day study visit to Denmark. The ‘Reuse in action: a tale of two cities’ visit showed how Copenhagen and Aarhus are already making reuse systems work for businesses and citizens across their city centres.

Denmark: an inspiring case of reuse in action

As shown by the ZWE-led ReuSe Vanguard Project (RSVP) and the Elevating Reuse in Cities (ERIC) project, many cities and municipalities across Europe are piloting reuse systems or plastic prevention plans. So why did this study visit focus on two Danish cities?

The EU Packaging & Packaging Waste Directive (PPWR), with its general provisions entering into force as national legislation on 12 August 2026, is pushing cities and businesses across Europe to move towards packaging reuse. But ban-oriented legislation without working systems in place can sometimes make things worse instead of better, as seen in Lisbon. When the Portuguese capital banned single use plastic cups in parts of the city without a reuse infrastructure and appropriate return incentives to replace them, the result was more street waste, not less.

On top of this, mandating reuse targets while single-use remains the cheapest and by default option on the shelf is like asking water to flow uphill: the conditions simply aren’t there yet for reuse systems to scale and compete.

In Denmark, citizens use around 200-300 million single-use cups each year in the urban space, with almost all of them being thrown away. In the specific case of Aarhus, 48% of all waste in public bins is packaging from the food and beverage sector alone. This translates to the wider picture of Danish cities. Aarhus and Copenhagen rolled up their sleeves: they used public procurement as a driver to commission reuse systems that can be conveniently and safely operated on their streets. Now, they collaborate to make these systems become a new reality for Denmark, supported by the right national incentives. 

Reuse in Copenhagen: open, accessible, and scalable 

The first stop of the study visit, Copenhagen, is a great example of how to encourage behaviour change through local action. Their reuse system, operated by New Loop, was only launched in October 2025 and already includes 34 return points across the city centre, strategically placed in areas where single-use containers are more often discarded. But what’s really impressive (and something that many tend to dismiss as fantasy) is that anyone can use it. There is no need for apps or cash, just a credit/debit card and a phone. Both reusable cups and food containers can be returned in under 30 seconds at one of the many reverse vending machines.

Copenhagen’s system runs off grid on battery and solar-powered return machines, which are very minimalist, low-tech, and mobile, qualities that are very important in cities with narrow streets and dense urban centres. In line with the RSVP Blueprint, the system has been designed and built for interoperability, meaning that any new reuse provider can join the system with their reusable packaging. The QR-tracked reusable packaging is made from 73% recycled vegetable oil to reduce its carbon footprint. This reuse system may be very recent and still in its pilot phase, but it is already being extended to Frederiksberg with an extra 20 return machines.

The reuse system itself is made to be self-sufficient and market-driven. Yet, to support scaling, joining businesses receive 100,000-300,000 DKK in financial support from the city. This helps to cover implementation costs and a smaller indoor return machine, with funding increasing based on how many single-use packaging items the participating units or chains use.

However, with no national reuse mandate yet in place in Denmark, the hope is that upcoming legislation makes reuse mandatory for take-away, creating the market conditions the system absolutely needs to become economically sustainable in the long run.

“What we are seeing in Copenhagen is that reuse does not have to be static or infrastructure-heavy. The system here is designed to be mobile, market-driven, and easily integrate into existing urban life. That makes it not only practical, but also scalable and economically and sustainable – which is exactly what is needed to accelerate reuse across Denmark and Europe – said Sarosh Qureshi Senior consultant, City of Copenhagen

Aarhus: two years of great reuse results

In the meantime, Aarhus’s reuse system – where TOMRA acts as the return machine provider and system operator – already has two years’ worth of results and learnings. 

The REUSEABLE project and its 1.8 million reused containers have so far avoided 20+ tonnes of waste, or the equivalent to a volume of nearly twenty thousands filled in public bins, and achieved a return rate of 88%.

These numbers get even more impressive when looking specifically at REUSABLE’s impact at events. The week-long Aarhus Festival alone recorded 150,000 container rotations with a 94% return rate. Other benefits included reduced post-event cleaning time and improved public attitudes toward waste management. 

Today, over 50 businesses participate in the system, and less than 1% of the reusable cups end up in city waste bins.

As the Aarhus reuse system has been operating at such a large scale and for a longer period, it offers valuable insights into what makes or breaks a city-wide reuse system. Pricing is a key factor here. For reuse to succeed, reusable packaging must cost roughly the same as single-use options in the local market. Under the current economic conditions (and until policies are introduced that account for the true cost of single-use waste), pricing needs to be carefully worked out to make the switch worthwhile for cafés, restaurants, and catering businesses, even if this means subsidising reusables in the early stages.

In a market still flooded with single-use packaging, it is also important that staff from participating bars and restaurants proactively offer the reusable option to their customers; otherwise, customers will simply default to what they know and handle best for the time being. Some Aarhus partners have solved this by switching to reusable as their default option, and one restaurant reported that after some initial confusion from their customers, reuse is now just part of their operations. Going even further, one restaurant owner noted they are considering charging customers who specifically request single-use packaging.

All in all, users of the Aarhus reuse system seem very pleased with it: only 4% of respondents were dissatisfied, and 40% say they would prefer reuse to be the only option.

Why do these reuse systems work?

Both systems are learning as they scale. A set of shared principles emerged from the learnings of Aarhus and Copenhagen that are directly relevant for any city or region looking to scale reuse:

• Public procurement is a driver of performance and urban design – rather than waiting for the market to act, both cities commissioned the systems they wanted to see. They’ve included environmental performance requirements and clear criteria in their tenders to ensure the system is built to scale and with convenience, safety, and urbanistic rules in mind. Going forward, aligning public procurement rules around reuse systems will also be essential to make local systems work together and mutually compatible.
• Convenience is non-negotiable – dense return point networks, fast, easy returns, and cashless systems all reduce the teething problems that usually kill adoption of new models, especially when a choice is given.
• The deposit cost for users matters – A deposit or library system is necessary for containers to come back. Yet, setting the right deposit value needs careful thinking. Set it too low, and customers may not bother. Set it too high, and it may alienate them. To the best extent, this needs to match the price of the container itself, while additional parameters such as environmental break-even (e.g. for pizza boxes) may require to set the bar higher to ensure the container is returned. 
• Retailers need cost neutrality – both TOMRA and New Loop have evidence that reuse pricing must be comparable to single-use ones for systems to be willingly adopted by both businesses and customers. In turn, this requires carefully working the financial equation, acknowledging which stakeholders (will) benefit from the shift and identifying who needs support to make it work. 
• Political back-up and engagement make a difference – in Aarhus, city representatives went door-to-door with retailers to explain the city’s waste-reduction strategy and get businesses on board, and it clearly worked.
• National legislation is the missing piece in Denmark – both cities agreed that taxes on single-use and mandatory reuse requirements are essential to scale these systems and make the full shift to reusables. Unlike in Germany, where cities were recognised the right to introduce their own tax on single-use packaging for take-away, the Danish context requires the national government to step in. The path to setting strong enough incentives (e.g., taxes/fees or bans) on single-use items, while necessary, may thus differ across national and local contexts.

‘The visit made us reflect that Aarhus may be further along than we sometimes realise in our day-to-day work. Seeing the system through the eyes of peers from across Europe gave us a valuable perspective on how much has actually been developed and tested over the past two years’, said Anders Laursen, project manager in the City of Aarhus. ‘We are proud and humble to share our findings and experiences for a potential more circular Europe.

At the same time, it reinforced that scaling reuse is not just about technology, but about the right framework conditions – from pricing and procurement to national legislation. Our experience shows that city-led action can kickstart real change, but it cannot stand alone.’

Beyond Denmark: how reuse is taking over Europe 

Aarhus and its REUSEABLE project are already part of the group of cities implementing interoperable and accessible reuse systems through the RSVP project. The learnings and experiences from Aarhus, Barcelona, Paris, Berlin, Ghent, Leuven, and Rotterdam served as the foundation for the second edition of RSVP’s Reuse Blueprint, providing essential criteria for reuse systems to work, which include effectiveness, recognition, interoperability, inclusiveness, and guaranteed safety. The geographical scope of RSVP continues to grow, with new locations such as Lisbon, Brussels, or Paris La Défense being added to the list of benefitters/contributors. 

‘’The packaging waste generated by the take-away and delivery sector is seen as a real, growing problem for local authorities. What are the solutions to address this? Any best practices for reuse out there? Where do we start, and with whom? These are some of the many questions we are asked every day by more and more people.’’, explained ZWE’s Nathan Dufour. ‘’With RSVP and initiatives such as this study trip in Denmark, workshops, online training, and targeted support meetings, we are taking giant steps in turning this group into a better informed and trained community to make reuse the norm again across Europe.’’

Similarly, the ERIC project – which started back in 2023 – is now actively supporting 10 EU municipalities in 5 EU countries, embedding waste prevention locally through the creation of Plastic Prevention Plans that target and implement single-use prevention actions within their direct sphere of public control (e.g. public events, public buildings, parks, procurement tenders). 

‘’Reuse systems are gaining real traction across ERIC cities, and the past few years have confirmed that events are the perfect entry point’’, added ZWE’s Manon Jourdan.’ ’Because their duration, audience, and business engagement are controlled, they offer an ideal testing ground before scaling to takeaways across the wider city. Most ERIC cities are now starting their reuse transition like that.’’

None of these cities and municipalities are waiting for the perfect conditions. They’re already building systems and models, learning fast, and openly sharing their learnings, impact, and shortcomings. In the end, that’s exactly what legislation like the PPWR needs to succeed in practice.

The infrastructure for reuse is here, and it clearly works. What we need now is political will and smart legislation, and that will make more cities join the reuse revolution.

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Photos: @Nicoline Karlsen

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