Local cider’s refillable bottles
Galicia, Asturias and Navarra
The origin of the flat cider enjoyed in Asturias and the neighbouring regions of Galicia and Navarra goes back to at least Roman times. Since 1880, a special refillable cider bottle made in a steel mould has been produced and used in local cideries across north-western Spain. Thanks to the bottle’s design, it can be “thrown” (i.e. poured from a height of over one metre), and is reusable at least 50 times. Bottles are either purchased empty, or filled with cider and subject to a deposit.
Approximately 45 million bottles are still filled annually, but single-use glass (and even plastic) is slowly taking over, due to pressure from supermarkets who are reluctant to store the used bottles.
Ecologistas en Acción and other local NGOs are working with the regional government and the local cider industry to preserve the refillable bottle scheme and the associated industry. National implementation of the recently adopted EU single-use plastics directive should provide a favourable framework for this initiative to expand and be replicated elsewhere.
