Jürgen Trittin’s can deposit was a huge success. Wait a minute, was it always like this? Before it was introduced in 2003, the aluminum industry had vehemently opposed the Green Environment Minister’s plan. Today she has not only made her peace, but recognizes it as the basis of a recycling model that contributed to the triumph of the aluminum can over other materials.
“A competitive advantage that we didn’t expect,” says Marius Baader, Managing Director of the Aluminum Germany Association. Two decades later, in a limited world, industry is concerned with establishing a circular economy in which, as far as possible, no more inputs are returned unused to the environment. The traffic light coalition agreement laid down principles. Companies strive to create product designs in such a way that material cycles can be closed.
