Electric Picnic festival-goers return a record-breaking 1.08 million cans and bottles for charity, as part of Re-turn for Good campaign

Over 1.08 million cans and bottles were returned at Electric Picnic last weekend – almost doubling last year's total of 545,000, and marking the most successful festival collection in Re-turn's history.

As Official Sustainability Partner of Electric Picnic, Re-turn significantly expanded its presence across the festival this year, with over 300 Orange Bins, Reverse Vending Machines, Re-turn Rangers, community volunteers and enhanced signage making it easier than ever for festival-goers to recycle and donate eligible drinks containers.

Every eligible can or bottle donated through an Orange Bin supports Re-turn for Children, helping six of Ireland's leading children's charities: Barnardos, Barretstown, Childline by ISPCC, Jack & Jill Children's Foundation, LauraLynn Ireland's Children's Hospice and Make-A-Wish Ireland.

Alongside the Orange Bin campaign, community organisations – including Meath Camogie, Killeshin GAA, Children's Books Ireland, and Down Syndrome Centre – have raised funds by collecting eligible containers.

One of the standout success stories was Meath Camogie, whose volunteers collected 233,610 eligible containers at Electric Picnic alone, raising an additional €35,000 towards the club's 'Your Plastic, Our Pitch' campaign. The club has now raised more than €270,000 towards purchasing land for a new home ground.

Overall, €160,000 was raised at Electric Picnic for charities and community groups.

The record-breaking Electric Picnic weekend brings this summer's Re-turn For Good campaign to a close, with over €335,000 raised for charities and community groups across Ireland's biggest concerts, festivals, and sporting events – from Bloom to the All-Ireland Championship.

At every event, Re-turn's Orange Bins gave people a simple way to donate eligible cans and bottles in support of Re-turn for Children, while community groups collected containers to raise funds for their own local initiatives. Together, these efforts showed how one small action could create a lasting impact for charities, communities and the circular economy.

"To see more than one million eligible cans and bottles returned at Electric Picnic is an incredible achievement and a fantastic way to finish what has been an outstanding summer for the Scheme," says Ciaran Foley, CEO of Re-turn. "What makes these figures even more meaningful is the impact behind them. Every container returned has helped support children's charities, community groups and local organisations across Ireland, while ensuring even more valuable materials remain within the circular economy.

"This summer showed that doing good doesn't have to be complicated. Whether people were at Bloom, cheering on their county at Croke Park or enjoying Electric Picnic, they embraced the opportunity to turn one small action into something much bigger."

Speaking on behalf of Re-turn for Children, Susan O'Dwyer, CEO of Make-A-Wish Ireland, said they have been "blown away by the support" for the charity initiative.

"To see so many festival, concert and sporting event goers donating their empty bottles over the summer has been fantastic," she continued. "It’s such a simple thing to do, but when thousands of people get involved, it makes a huge difference. Every can or bottle returned will help six national children’s charities continue their work supporting vulnerable and seriously ill children across the country.

"A massive thank you to everyone at Electric Picnic and all the events across the summer, all the brilliant volunteers who gave their time, and especially every attendee who donated. It’s been an amazing response and one that will make a real difference to children and families."

Following the success of Re-turn for Good, Re-turn are set to continue working with event organisers, venues, community groups and charities to make returning eligible drinks containers as simple and convenient as possible, ensuring even more people can do good while they're on the move.