TLDR: Beer Brands Promote Glass Bottle Reuse and Recycling
- Sustainable packaging is only one part of building a circular economy. Keeping materials in use requires participation across the entire value chain.
- Leading beverage brands in Colombia, Peru, and Ecuador partnered with O-I Andean to encourage consumers to return and recycle glass bottles through a multi-market digital awareness campaign.
- The campaign demonstrated how returnable glass bottles and glass recycling work together to keep valuable materials in circulation.
- As an infinitely recyclable packaging material, glass is one of the few packaging materials that supports both reuse and recycling, making it uniquely suited for a circular packaging system.
- Brands, glass manufacturers, and consumers can work together to strengthen circular packaging systems.
Sustainable packaging has been at the center of the conversation for years. But what happens after the product is used?
Some of Latin America’s leading beer brands recently joined forces with O-I to shine a spotlight on something already happening every day across Colombia, Peru, and Ecuador: glass bottles returning to the circular economy through both returnable systems and recycling.
The beer brands found an engaging way to catch consumer attention, reinforcing that true circularity is only possible through participation across the value chain.
A Message About Glass Recycling and Returnable Glass Bottles
Together, the beer brands Bavaria, Backus, and Cervecería Nacional created a campaign that demonstrated that circularity isn’t just a design principle — It’s a shared responsibility. At the center of the campaign was a simple idea: Déjala que vuelva. Or translated, “Let it come back.”
As influencer Isabella McCausland points out in the video above, it’s not that all things should come back, but glass bottles should!
Through a single returnable bottle, it can be returned up to 25 times for reuse. But what makes any of this even possible is manufacturers, brands, and consumers working together to make sure that glass bottles always find their way back – and not discarded as trash.
The message of “let it come back” carries a dual meaning.
For returnable bottles, it encourages customers to return them for cleaning, refilling, and reuse. For recyclable bottles, it reinforces that glass can be collected, processed, and reused to make new bottles again and again. Whether a bottle is reused or recycled, it’s part of a continuous cycle that doesn’t result in waste.
Rather than relying on a single communication channel, the campaign reached consumers through the brands’ social media channels, influencer partnerships (as seen above), and earned media.
Everyone Benefits When Brands Champion Circular Systems
Packaging plays an important role in sustainability. The greatest environmental impact comes when packaging is designed and used within circular systems. When beverage brands are able to use their platforms to educate consumers, they raise awareness of systems already operating in their markets.
Instead of asking consumers to adopt entirely new behaviors, the campaign highlighted existing opportunities to participate in returnable and recycling programs, making circularity feel practical, accessible, and achievable.
It’s an example of how brands can extend their sustainability commitments beyond product design and help strengthen the systems that support circular packaging.
Glass Is Uniquely Positioned for Circular Packaging
Glass is uniquely suited to support a low-waste circular economy because of multiple reasons, three of which are important to note:
- Glass is 100% infinitely recyclable, meaning quality is maintained during recycling.
- Glass is made from materials natural to the earth (sand, limestone, and soda ash), as well as recycled glass. As far as materials go, glass is a friendly packaging choice for the earth and environment.
- Using recycled glass reduces energy consumption and carbon emissions.
Returnable glass bottles can be collected, washed, and refilled multiple times. When a bottle reaches the end of its reusable life, glass can be recycled into new bottles again and again without loss of quality. The more glass that can be recycled, the greater the increase in availability of recycled glass, also called cullet, and the less glass lands in landfills.
This ability to support both reuse and infinite recyclability makes glass one of the few packaging materials capable of remaining in continuous circulation through multiple life cycles.
O-I’s Role in the Value Chain Makes Circularity Possible
At O-I, we believe the success of a circular economy depends on collaboration.
As a global glass packaging manufacturer, O-I works alongside customers, communities, suppliers, and industry partners to strengthen the systems that keep glass in circulation.
Whether supporting returnable packaging programs, expanding glass recycling initiatives, or increasing recycled content in new containers, these partnerships help build more resilient circular ecosystems over time.
The recent collaboration across Colombia, Peru, and Ecuador demonstrates what’s possible when manufacturers and brands work together toward a shared goal.
The Future of Sustainable Packaging in a Circular Economy
The reality is that the transition to a fully circular economy won’t happen through packaging innovation alone. It requires manufacturers designing circular materials, brands engaging consumers, and consumers choosing to return or recycle every bottle.
The “Déjala que vuelva” campaign shows what’s possible when every part of the value chain works together from creation to consumption of a beverage packaged in glass.
Because every bottle that comes back, whether for reuse or recycling, is another step toward keeping glass in circulation and building a more sustainable future that benefits everyone.
