Do de-alcoholized beverage containers need to be registered with Encorp?

With the rapidly growing popularity of de-alcoholized beverages such as non-alcohol beers, ciders, wines and mocktails, it can be confusing to determine which stewardship organization to register with. The correct answer is Encorp Pacific (Canada) better known as Return-It.

Although many de-alcoholized beers, ciders, wines and mocktails are produced by alcohol brands, these beverages fall under the same category as other non-alcohol “ready-to-drink” beverages such as water, pop or juice. While some beverages may say they contain 0.5% alcohol, that is still considered de-alcoholized and falls under the Encorp program who is the appointed agent to fulfill the BC Recycling Regulation requirements for all of these “ready-to-drink" beverages.

While many alcohol brands may have their alcohol beverages registered with BRCCC or BCLDB, de-alcoholized versions need to be registered with Encorp to be sold in BC and to be in compliance with the BC Recycling Regulation.

For detailed information on registration processes and requirements, please contact the Return-It Brand Registry team at brandregistry@returnit.ca.