Lisbon Introduces City-wide Reusable Cup System To Tackle Plastic Waste

Lisbon was the first capital city in Europe to introduce a city-wide reusable cup program as part of the city's strategy to minimize plastic waste and encourage sustainable consumption. The program, funded in partnership with the City of Lisbon, TOMRA, and AHRESP (Associação da Hotelaria, Restauração e Similares de Portugal), aimed at creating a decrease in the use of single-use cups that were being wasted in the city's nightlife and hospitality industries.

The scheme opened for trading on 27 June 2025 with return points in Praça de São Paulo and Praça do Príncipe Real. Reusable cups are now served to customers for a €0.60 deposit, which is repayable on return of the cup. The system is contactless and does not involve preregistration – refunds are provided by card or phone tap at TOMRA return points.

The project comes after the city council of Lisbon banned single-use plastic cups, whose enforcement required a robust infrastructure. The rollout of the reusable cup system countrywide will be completed by October 2025 with 17 return points in inner city areas in the scheme.

The remanufactured cup scheme is powered by TOMRA's "Rotake" technology, a integrated reuse solution that manages the digital monitoring, collection, sanitizing, and redistribution of cups. Reverse vending expert TOMRA governs the entire life cycle of the cups to render them health and environment compliant.

The hospitality sector is central to this change, and AHRESP made it possible to engage cafes, restaurants, and bars. The change also acts to make it easier to comply with new legislation in Lisbon and provide companies with a real solution for waste reduction.

Today, there are around 25,000 cups being consumed every evening in the nightlife of Lisbon. Although they are branded as "reusable," there was no systematic procedure before handling their return or reuse, which only created more waste. This new measure will take its place and introduce an operating reuse culture to the city.

The council hopes to, in the long run, introduce a standard "Lisbon cup" in all sites participating. It draws inspiration from an existing model by a comparable program in Aarhus, Denmark, which has gotten over a million cups back and has a over 85% return rate over the last 18 months. Lisbon wants to follow in their footsteps and set the pace on sustainable initiatives among European capitals.

The program was last week launched at the "Lisboa a Reutilizar" conference in the Museum of Design (MUDE), where policymakers, planners, and environmentalists discussed the operation of the TOMRA return points and deposit refund mechanism.

This initiative is not just a bid to minimize waste but also an indication of a larger move towards circular economy practices. By making a system reusable, Lisbon aims to set an example and inspire other municipalities to adopt like systems where resource efficiency and long-term sustainability are paramount.

The initiative is the outcome of collaboration among Lisbon City Council, TOMRA Reuse – a subsidiary of the TOMRA Group – and AHRESP. TOMRA Reuse is world-famous for its circular economy solutions with over 113,000 systems installed globally. Lisbon City Council has 24 parishes and has over half a million citizens, whereas AHRESP speaks on behalf of Portugal's hotel, restaurant, and comparable establishments.

As Lisbon prepares for launch in October, further efforts will be made to enhance public engagement, increase exposure, and establish local partnership to secure the initiative's long-term success.

Source: TOMRA, Press Release July 2, 2025
Credits: City of Lisbon, TOMRA, AHRESP