More than half a million euros donated to charity through RVMs
Since the beginning of 2023, Latvian citizens have donated more than 500 000 euros to charity from the deposit fee for returned packaging through reverse vending machines (RVMs). Of them, within the donation initiative "Donate your deposit” 36% (182 261 €) went to support Ukraine and Ukrainian refugee children, another 36% (180 092 €) to animal shelters and 16% (82 309 €) donated to seniors in need. For seriously ill children, for whom donations through RVMs can be made from December 2023, less than 5% of the total, or 24 313 €, has been donated so far. A separate charity project "Old age is not a loneliness" is being implemented in the “Lidl” stores, where more than 51,000 € has been donated to support seniors.
“The first year of the deposit system has turned the myth that people in Latvia don't want to, or don't know how to recycle. In addition, it has shown the double responsibility – we sort responsibly and with our heart! The large amount of money that has been directed to tackling important social issues is a prime example of this. We encourage you to continue to use the rewards from your deposit packaging for causes that are important to society as a whole. We would like to thank the deposit system operator for their excellent cooperation in initiating this responsible donation!” comments Rūta Dimanta, Head of the Charity Organisation Ziedot.lv.
"The deposit system has been able not only to improve the cleanliness of the surrounding environment, but also served as an accessible and convenient platform for residents to donate money to charity. Our observations show that on average 1% of the deposit fees recovered are donated by users of the system during the year. This means that the deposit fee is donated for every 100th package, but on the total number of packages handed over to the system, significant funds can be donated to charity over the course of a year. I would like to thank all the users of the deposit system who choose to do two good deeds at the same time – hand over empty beverage packages for recycling and donate the deposit fee to charity. Thanks also to our reliable partner Ziedot.lv, who carefully distributes the donated funds to help those in trouble as much as possible," says Miks Stūrītis, chairman of the board of SIA Depozīta Iepakojuma Operators.
Results for year 2023
The donations made through Ziedot.lv have helped several hundreds of people in need. In 2023, the largest amount was donated to animal shelters. This helped 2410 animals living in six different shelters in Latvia. Last year's donations also helped 604 Latvian seniors by paying for various daily necessities and medical services. Citizens have also felt a great responsibility to help Ukrainian refugees by donating to the needs of refugee children – donations in 2023 have supported 633 children in Latvia.
But the donations collected at “Lidl” RVMs were donated to the Latvian Samaritans Association. The donations have helped almost a thousand lonely seniors by providing them with everyday hygiene products, food, household goods, as well as basic care services during trips with a mobile care bus.
The report on the use of donations in 2023 of the “Donate Your deposit” initiative is available here.
The year 2024 – on a positive start
The year 2024 also started with a fairly high participation rate. In the first months, 36,404 € has already been donated to animal shelters, while 13,503 € has been donated to seniors in need by users of the deposit system. The largest amount donated this year is currently 52 262 € in support of Ukraine. From December 2023, it has also been possible to donate to seriously ill children, and by April this year, people had already donated 24 313 € to support children.
Latvian seniors in need and parents of seriously ill children can apply for assistance by filling in an application form on the Ziedot.lv portal. After submitting the application, a Ziedot.lv employee will contact the person, discuss the situation and agree on the next steps. For more information: https://www.ziedot.lv/pieteikt-palidzibu. 100% of all donated money goes to the applicants and provides important support.
Also in 2024, to help lonely seniors in the Latvian Samaritans' Association charity project "Old age is not a loneliness", 20 000 euros have already been donated in “Lidl” store RVMs.
Since the beginning of 2023, Latvian citizens have donated more than 500 000 euros to charity from the deposit fee for returned packaging through reverse vending machines (RVMs). Of them, within the donation initiative "Donate your deposit” 36% (182 261 €) went to support Ukraine and Ukrainian refugee children, another 36% (180 092 €) to animal shelters and 16% (82 309 €) donated to seniors in need. For seriously ill children, for whom donations through RVMs can be made from December 2023, less than 5% of the total, or 24 313 €, has been donated so far. A separate charity project "Old age is not a loneliness" is being implemented in the “Lidl” stores, where more than 51,000 € has been donated to support seniors.
“The first year of the deposit system has turned the myth that people in Latvia don't want to, or don't know how to recycle. In addition, it has shown the double responsibility – we sort responsibly and with our heart! The large amount of money that has been directed to tackling important social issues is a prime example of this. We encourage you to continue to use the rewards from your deposit packaging for causes that are important to society as a whole. We would like to thank the deposit system operator for their excellent cooperation in initiating this responsible donation!” comments Rūta Dimanta, Head of the Charity Organisation Ziedot.lv.
"The deposit system has been able not only to improve the cleanliness of the surrounding environment, but also served as an accessible and convenient platform for residents to donate money to charity. Our observations show that on average 1% of the deposit fees recovered are donated by users of the system during the year. This means that the deposit fee is donated for every 100th package, but on the total number of packages handed over to the system, significant funds can be donated to charity over the course of a year. I would like to thank all the users of the deposit system who choose to do two good deeds at the same time – hand over empty beverage packages for recycling and donate the deposit fee to charity. Thanks also to our reliable partner Ziedot.lv, who carefully distributes the donated funds to help those in trouble as much as possible," says Miks Stūrītis, chairman of the board of SIA Depozīta Iepakojuma Operators.
Results for year 2023
The donations made through Ziedot.lv have helped several hundreds of people in need. In 2023, the largest amount was donated to animal shelters. This helped 2410 animals living in six different shelters in Latvia. Last year's donations also helped 604 Latvian seniors by paying for various daily necessities and medical services. Citizens have also felt a great responsibility to help Ukrainian refugees by donating to the needs of refugee children – donations in 2023 have supported 633 children in Latvia.
But the donations collected at “Lidl” RVMs were donated to the Latvian Samaritans Association. The donations have helped almost a thousand lonely seniors by providing them with everyday hygiene products, food, household goods, as well as basic care services during trips with a mobile care bus.
The report on the use of donations in 2023 of the “Donate Your deposit” initiative is available here.
The year 2024 – on a positive start
The year 2024 also started with a fairly high participation rate. In the first months, 36,404 € has already been donated to animal shelters, while 13,503 € has been donated to seniors in need by users of the deposit system. The largest amount donated this year is currently 52 262 € in support of Ukraine. From December 2023, it has also been possible to donate to seriously ill children, and by April this year, people had already donated 24 313 € to support children.
Latvian seniors in need and parents of seriously ill children can apply for assistance by filling in an application form on the Ziedot.lv portal. After submitting the application, a Ziedot.lv employee will contact the person, discuss the situation and agree on the next steps. For more information: https://www.ziedot.lv/pieteikt-palidzibu. 100% of all donated money goes to the applicants and provides important support.
Also in 2024, to help lonely seniors in the Latvian Samaritans' Association charity project "Old age is not a loneliness", 20 000 euros have already been donated in “Lidl” store RVMs.
