[mschuster91]

> An investment in capability that benefitted basically no one.

There is a benefit: You rarely find plastic bottles and beer cans in the environment any more.

[lampe3]

Really? I live in Hamburg, Germany. The amount of broken glass bottles is amazing...

I lived in Hamburg for almost 30 years, but the city was never dirtier than it is right now.

[gambiting]

I imagine the part of the problem is that once the bottle is broken, or the barcode is damaged, there is no incentive to return it anymore.

[csunbird]

Same in Berlin, I had to replace my bike's tires more than once.

Replying to sibling comment: The incentive is to not break the bottle, but return it instead.