Coca-Cola Europacific Partners completes line conversion across all its manufacturing sites in GB to produce plastic bottles with attached caps to boost recycling

• The new bottle format keeps the cap connected to the plastic bottle after opening, making it easier to recycle the entire package
• Morpeth will produce 600ml and 850ml plastic bottles of well-known brand Glaceau Smartwater

Coca-Cola Europacific Partners (CCEP) GB has completed the roll out of its attached cap plastic bottles with production now underway at its manufacturing site in Morpeth, Northumberland, making it the final site to make the switch.

The attached cap mechanic is the same as that of a normal cap. The innovation lies in the ring around the neck of the bottle, where a tether has been added to keep the cap firmly on the bottle so that it’s easier to collect and recycle them together.

A message on the bottle cap reminds customers of the change with the caption: ‘I am attached to recycle together’.

When running at full capacity, Morpeth will be able to produce 17.5 million unit cases of attached cap plastic bottles of Glaceau Smartwater each year to be sold to customers across GB.

The phased roll out began two years ago across CCEP’s five manufacturing sites in GB*, with the line that produces Smartwater at Morpeth and the line that produces Oasis packaging at CCEP’s Edmonton site the last to have made the switch this spring. This is part of a £7.5m investment to reconfigure the existing lines to manufacture plastic bottles with attached caps.

including the acceleration of (rPET) in 500ml plastic bottles from 50% to 100%, and the roll out of sustainable cardboard outliers to replace plastic shrink wrap on all multi-pack cans, which has concluded this year.

Allan French, Operations Director at Coca-Cola Europacific Partners’ manufacturing site in Morpeth, said: “We’re excited to have begun production of Smartwater Glaceau plastic bottles with attached caps.

“Morpeth has played a key role in the business’ sustainability journey over the years. We were the first site in GB to produce bottles in 100% rPET, and we’ve sent zero waste to landfill in over ten years. I’m proud of the strides we’re making to step up our sustainability journey. A big thank you to the whole team here at Morpeth, who work hard to make all these changes possible.”

Stephen Moorhouse, Vice President and General Manager at Coca-Cola Europacific Partners (CCEP) GB, said: “We became the first major soft drinks producer in GB to introduce the innovative attached caps design on our plastic bottles back in 2022 and we’re pleased to have completed the transition across our portfolio of drinks we manufacture locally at our five sites.”

“It’s initiatives like these that play a big part in our commitment towards achieving a World Without Waste and in accelerating our This is Forward sustainability strategy.”

*CCEP’s GB manufacturing sites are located in East Kilbride, Morpeth, Wakefield, Sidcup and Edmonton.