Again

Milk & More's partnership with Again / Source: Again

EuropeFood & BeverageGlassPackaging

5 MINUTE READ

Nate Tyler

WHAT WE SAY:

As extended producer responsibility becomes more prevalent, brands are looking for ways to incorporate reusable and refillable packaging into their business models. Again is here with the infrastructure and tracking systems to make that happen.

The London-based company provides scalable cleaning, distribution, and tracking. Although currently operating on a small scale, it's affordable and has three successful pilots under its belt. With packaging prices rising, refill doesn't just make environmental sense, it's starting to make financial sense too.

KEY FACTS:

Again was launched in 2021 when founder and CEO Matt Kennedy saw a gap in the refill market for decentralised cleaning and distribution.
The London-based company provides the infrastructure for cleaning, drying, de-labelling, visually inspecting, palletising, and distributing reusable packaging for consumer goods companies.
CleanCells are at the heart of Again's agile infrastructure layer. The shipping container-based, automated micro cleaning facilities handle every stage between collecting a bottle from a consumer and placing it on a filling line again.
Their relative portability means CleanCells can be placed at retailers' distribution centres, waste management companies' materials recovery facilities, or ahead of brands' production lines.
CleanCells are designed to process 500,000 units per month, using custom hardware, computing, and robotics.
Again can currently process packaging made from Glass and reusable PET and PP.
The company’s tracking system, called Again Tag, is fully automated, and can scan and sort packaging by brand, size, and type. It can also monitor the amount of reuses, return rates, available inventory, and data such as water usage and CO2e saved.
Again claims it produces 60% less CO2e compared to recycling, while also using 90% less energy and 76% less water. Individual LCAs are provided for free to Again’s partners.
The company prices its services from GBP 0.12 (USD 0.15) per unit of packaging, making it comparable to single-use items. There are also no upfront costs when brands opt-in to Again’s service.
Again raised GBP 2.55 million (USD 3.13 million) in a pre-seed funding round in April 2022, and has a Series A round planned for late 2023. In autumn 2022, the company was also a partial winner — along with five other companies — of the GBP 1.4 million (USD 1.72 million) Bring It Back Fund created by Starbucks and Hubbub.
Again currently has two CleanCells in operation, and says its goal is to "create a world where reuse surpasses single-use on every metric" by 2025. As of the end of 2022, the company had processed 100,000 units for reuse.

CleanCell reusable packaging cleaning facility / Source: Again

Again inspection line / Source: Again

DIVE DEEPER:

Reusable packaging represents less than 2% of the market.
Again bridges the infrastructure gaps which prevent brands from reusing and refilling packaging, and claims that items in its cleaning supply chain are reused an average of 6.8 times.
In 2021, the UK recycled 73.6% of glass packaging and 44.2% of plastic packaging. In comparison, Again claims that 85.6% of packaging is shipped from FMCG brands to Again’s CleanCells for cleaning and redistribution. Again’s data includes all packaging reconditioned by its services, including reusable plastic, but most of its trials so far have focused on glass containers.
Reuse and refill are often associated with higher prices, but Again's low, consistent unit prices are preferable to the volatile costs of sourcing raw materials and manufacturing new packaging. Again states that some of its customers have experienced 80% increases in the price of packaging.
Reuse also mitigates against the cost of extended producer responsibility. In the UK, Packaging Recovery Notes (PRNs) have increased significantly in recent years. Glass recycling costs have increased by 111%, the price of paper PRNs reached a near 20-year high in 2022, and plastic PRNs cost GBP 325.40 (USD 398.04) in March 2023, compared to GBP 91.85 (USD 112.35) at the same time in 2022.
Again estimates that due to increasing PRN prices and the introduction of eco-taxes in 2024, reusable packaging will undercut single use by next year.
In 2022, Again ran pilot programmes with Camden Town Brewery (Budweiser), Johnnie Walker Black, and Smirnoff bottles (Diageo), in cooperation with Biffa Waste Management. Bottles were collected from London nightclubs and Arsenal's Emirates Stadium using electric vehicles supplied by Renault.
In 2023, Again partnered with online milk and grocery delivery company Milk & More (M&M) to clean bottles picked up from M&M’s delivery drivers in an existing reusable scheme. The trial involves two M&M suppliers, Tom Parker Creamery and The Village Press. There are plans for nationwide availability and more brands to join later in the year.

"Our vision is to shift billions of units of packaging to reuse in a way that has never been done before."

Again

Key Design Considerations:

Cleaning is one aspect of refill

While Again provides all the resources needed for cleaning, sorting, and distributing refillable packaging, it’s not a consumer-facing company. That means you’re responsible for encouraging buy-in from consumers, ensuring they get on board with refill and deposit their packaging in the appropriate places.

Data equals transparency

When looking at setting up a refill scheme, look to a company like Again that can provide real-time data into how effective refill is. With accurate data, you can communicate your sustainability credentials transparently to consumers. And with transparency, comes trust and loyalty.

Material limitations

At the moment, Again can only process glass and reusable PET and PP. This may change in future, but the availability — or lack — of infrastructure may shape your refill and reuse offering in the short term.