The Reverse Logistics of

Beverage Containers.

(A case study of Lagos, Nigeria)

Master’s Thesis
Dudubo Mobolaji
22 February 2017
Information and Service
Economy

Approved in the Department of Information and Service Economy

__ / __ / 20__ and awarded the grade

_______________________________________________________
 Aalto University, P.O. BOX 11000, 00076 AALTO
www.aalto.fi
Abstract of master’s thesis

Author Dudubo Mobolaji

Title of thesis The Reverse Logistics of Beverage Containers (A Case Study of Lagos, Nigeria)
Degree Master of Science in Economics and Business Administration
Degree programme Information and Service Economy
Thesis advisor(s) Markku Kuula, Yawar Sadaat
Year of approval 2017 Number of pages 93 Language English

i
 Aalto University, P.O. BOX 11000, 00076 AALTO
www.aalto.fi
Abstract of master’s thesis

Abstract

The reverse logistics of beverage containers is still in its formative stage in the city of Lagos. A
significant number of consumers still discard the empties of beverage drinks indiscriminately
despite that their residues can be reused as secondary materials in the packaging industry and
other supply chains. Undoubtedly, waste collection is a common phenomenon among developing
nations and this societal challenge has created a disconnection between the consumers of beverage
drinks and the recycling industry that reprocess and reintegrate the beverage empties into supply
chains.

On the part of Lagos state government and federal governments of Nigeria, much has not been
done or achieved in curbing the act of indiscriminate disposal of used beverage containers.
Government policies are currently not centered on the 3R of sustainable waste management i.e.
reduce, reuse and recycle. Furthermore, the majority of producers of beverage drinks and the
packaging industry are more interested in getting their products to the market rather than taking
responsibility for the empties of their products.

This study combines different sources of data to analyze the situation of packaging and packaging
waste in the city of Lagos and the outcome of the analysis was compared with the Finnish waste
management system for the purpose of making recommendations on how to improve the waste
management situation in Nigeria. A survey of consumers of beverage drinks was also conducted in
Lagos and a video documentary on waste management in Lagos state was also considered in the
analysis. In addition to the two research techniques, government legislations on waste
management, personal observations and selected literatures that describe the reserve logistics
hierarchy, the drivers of reverse logistics and the concept of consumers as material suppliers were
used to develop a theoretical framework for this study.
The overall result shows that government has a major role to play in the reverse logistics of
beverage containers by indirectly participating in the supply chain of producers through the
enactment of legislations that addresses the issues of reduce, reuse and recycle (3R). Furthermore,
the reverse logistics of beverage containers is a collaborative process that brings together all supply
chain stakeholders including the actors of reverse supply chain (from packaging industry to the
consumers) to work towards the accomplishment of same goal. Further, the consumers being the
first link of the reverse supply chain must also be prepared to perform the responsibilities placed
on their shoulders. The acceptance of their new role of material suppliers will go a long way in
addressing the collection problems of used beverage containers in Lagos.

Keywords Reverse logistics, beverage containers, packaging, recycling, waste, legislation, 3R

ii
 Acknowledgements

Acknowledgements
My sincere appreciation goes to my wife and son (Motunrayo and Mobolade) for their love
and understanding particularly in the course of getting this work done.

I would like to appreciate my two advisors (Markku and Sadaat) for their guidance and
encouragement throughout the completion of my thesis.

Above all, I am eternally grateful to God almighty for his grace upon my life and the strength
he has given me to complete this academic work.

1
 Acknowledgements

Table of Contents
Acknowledgements .................................................................................................................. 1

List of Abbreviations ............................................................................................................... 6

1 Introduction and Background of Study ......................................................................... 7

1.1 Research Objectives .......................................................................................................... 11
1.2 Methods and Case Studies ................................................................................................ 12
1.3 The Justification for Selecting the Two Cities ................................................................ 12
1.4 Structure of the Thesis ...................................................................................................... 14

2 Literature Review .......................................................................................................... 15

2.1 The Definition of Reverse Logistics in the Context of this Study .................................. 15
2.2 Packaging Waste Legislations in European Countries ....................................... 17
2.2.1 The German Packaging Ordinance ................................................................................. 17
2.2.2 European Union Packaging and Packaging Waste Directive (PPWD) 94/62/EC ........... 18
2.2.3 Finnish Laws on Packaging and Packaging Waste ......................................................... 19
2.2.4 The Finnish Beverage containers Deposit Return System .............................................. 21
2.3 Process Analysis of the Finnish Deposit Return system for Beverage Containers ...... 22
2.4 Status of Solid Waste Management in Developing Countries ....................................... 23
2.4.1 Packaging Waste Legislations in Nigeria........................................................................ 25
2.5 The Situation of Used Beverage Containers in the City of Lagos ................................. 25
2.5.1 Collection and Recycling of Used Beverage Containers (UBC) in Lagos...................... 27
2.5.2 Analysis of the Supply Chain of Beverage Containers ................................................... 28
2.6 Mapping of Theoretical Framework................................................................................ 29
2.7 Reverse Logistics/ Waste Disposition Hierarchy (3R) .................................................... 32
2.7.1 Reducing of Packaging Waste......................................................................................... 33
2.7.2 Reusing of Packaging Materials ...................................................................................... 33
2.7.3 Recycling of Packaging materials ................................................................................... 34
2.8 Drivers of Reverse Logistics ............................................................................................. 35
2.8.1 Legislation ....................................................................................................................... 35
2.8.2 Economic......................................................................................................................... 36
2.8.3 Corporate Citizenship ...................................................................................................... 37
2.9 Consumers Involvement.................................................................................................... 37

3 Research Methodology .................................................................................................. 39

3.1 The description of the Case Studies ................................................................................. 39
3.1.1 The city of Lagos ............................................................................................................ 39

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 Acknowledgements

3.1.2 Helsinki ........................................................................................................................... 39

3.2 Methods and Data collection ............................................................................................ 40
3.2.1 Primary Data ................................................................................................................... 40
3.2.2 Secondary Data ............................................................................................................... 41
3.3 Comparison of Lagos and Helsinki waste management approach ............................... 41

4 Empirical Evidence ........................................................................................................ 45

4.1 Demographic Composition ............................................................................................... 45
4.2 Data Analysis ..................................................................................................................... 47

5 Discussion........................................................................................................................ 55
5.1 Result Discussion ............................................................................................................... 55

6 Conclusion and Recommendation ................................................................................ 59

6.1 Conclusion .......................................................................................................................... 59
6.2 Limitations ......................................................................................................................... 60
6.3 Recommendation ............................................................................................................... 61
6.3.1 Further Research ............................................................................................................. 61
6.3.2 Recommendation for Lagos State and the Government of Nigeria ................................ 61
6.4 Summary ............................................................................................................................ 65

References ............................................................................................................................... 67
Books and reports ......................................................................................................................... 67
Articles ......................................................................................................................................... 67
A separate part of a collection, handbook, or conference proceedings ........................................ 73
Internet-references........................................................................................................................ 73
Legislation .................................................................................................................................... 75

Appendix A: Interviews Extract ........................................................................................... 76

Appendix B: Questionnaire................................................................................................... 78

Appendix C: Recycling banks in Lagos (LAWMA, 2011) ................................................. 81

Appendix D: Personal Observation on the streets of Lagos .............................................. 82

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 Acknowledgements

List of Figures
Figure 1 The structure of the thesis.......................................................................................... 14
Figure 2 The flow of beverage containers and deposits in the Finnish market ....................... 23
Figure 3 The current collection system of used beverage containers in Lagos ....................... 29
Figure 4 EU directive 2008/98/EC .......................................................................................... 30
Figure 5 Driving triangle for reverse logistics (De Brito and Dekker, 2003) ......................... 31
Figure 6 The reverse logistics framework of beverage containers .......................................... 32
Figure 7 Reverse logistics hierarchy (Carter and Ellram, 1998) ............................................. 35
Figure 8 How beverages consumed in traffic are discarded .................................................... 50
Figure 9 Used beverage containers disposal ............................................................................ 51
Figure 10 Individualperformance level .................................................................................... 51
Figure 11 Cross tabulation of age and frequency of consumption .......................................... 52
Figure 12 Collection point ....................................................................................................... 54

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 Acknowledgements

List of Tables
Table 1 Common activities of reverse logistics(Rogersand Tibben-Lembke, 2002) .............. 10
Table 2 Recycling target (EU directive 2004/12/EC) .............................................................. 19
Table 3 Approved producer organization for packaging products (YMPARISTO, 2016)...... 22
Table 4 Buy-back price (LAWMA, 2016) ............................................................................... 27
Table 5 Sex .............................................................................................................................. 45
Table 6 Age of respondents .................................................................................................... 46
Table 7 Level of education ..................................................................................................... 46
Table 8 Occupation ................................................................................................................. 47
Table 9 Other_ occupation ...................................................................................................... 47
Table 10 Knowledge of sustainable waste management ......................................................... 48
Table 11 Taking ownership of waste management.................................................................. 49
Table 12 Awareness of measures to discourage inappropriate disposal of beverage empties. 49
Table 13 Handling of used beverage containers in eco-friendly manner ................................ 53

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 List of Abbreviations

List of Abbreviations

3R - Reduce, Reuse and Recycle

EPR - Extended Producer Responsibility

EU - European Union

FEPA - Federal Environmental Protection Agency

GDPPW - Government Decision on Packaging and Packaging Waste

LASEPA - Lagos State Environmental Protection Agency

LAWMA - Lagos State Waste Management Agency

MSWM - Municipal Solid Waste Management

NESREA - National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement

Agency

PALPA - Suomen Palautuspakkaus Oy

PET - Polyethylene Terephthalate

PPWD - Packaging and Packaging Waste Directive

PRO - Producer Responsibility Organization

PSP - Private Sector Partnership

RLEC - Reverse Logistics Executive Council

RVM - Reverse Vending Machine

UBC - Used Beverage Containers

6
 Introduction and Background of Study

1 Introduction and Background of Study

Many years ago, prior to 1960 the society at large practiced sustainable consumption and
waste management had not constituted a serious societal problem. Unlike nowadays where
we live in the modern age where technology has influenced our lifestyles, consumption
patterns and has even changed the dimension of waste generation. Usapein and Chavalparit
(2014) assert that there are four sources of waste generation, namely, production,
maintenance, waste treatment and waste packaging which is the focus of this study.
A significant number of consumer goods sold in the market today come with packaging
materials such as plastics bottles, aluminum cans and glass bottles, and when these packaging
materials are not handled appropriately after the consumption of the products, they constitute
a waste of resources that does no good to the environment.
Waste is the product of human activities (Hasan, 2004, Garcia-Rodriguez et al., 2013) and is
the most visible evidence of inefficiency in any system (Ezeah and Roberts, 2014). It can also
be described as an evidence of life and where ever there is human activity, such place is
bound to generate waste (Oresanya, 2016). The European directives 75/442/EEC and
2008/98/CE defined waste as “any substance or object which the holder disposes of or is
required to dispose of”.

The last two decades was characterized by the unprecedented growth in world’s population
(Mace et al., 2013; UNFPA, 2016) and within that period there have been increase in
production activities and consumption level (Ezeah and Roberts, 2012; Memon, 2010).
Furthermore, the volume of waste generation on one hand is proportionate to the economic
activities and consumption level of people (Aarnio and Hämäläinen 2008) while on the other,
is linked to urbanization and economic growth (Memon, 2010).

The term “waste” is relative in meaning and the substance or item that is perceived as waste
in a society could be a source of secondary materials in another context. The differences in
the perception of waste depends on the efficiencies or inefficiencies of the waste management
authorities in discharging their duties to the people. Moreover, the existence of policies to
curb the land filing of waste, and to channel waste to recovery facilities could also be a factor
in the management of municipal solid waste. (Hasan, 2004)

Despite the fact that waste represent inefficiencies of the system and the by-product of human
activities; it can also be a source of raw materials, energy and other resource (Abila, 2014).
Packaging materials or beverage drinks containers such as plastic, glass and aluminum do

7
 Introduction and Background of Study

have some values incorporated in them after the contents of the containers have been
consumed. These residues have to be collected from the point of consumption or disposal to
the point where value will be added to them as secondary raw materials. Post-consumer
products such as used beverage containers can only become a waste of resources when the
residues or empties are not collected from the point of disposal and transported to the point
where they are reused and integrated back into supply chains (Oresanya, 2016)

However, the neglect of post-consumer products by many manufacturers (Brown and

Ferguson, 2001) and the indiscriminate disposal of post-consumer products particularly in
developing countries are unacceptable behaviors which poses threat to the entirety of the
society including governments at all levels of the society (Kofoworola, 2007; Memon, 2010).
As a result of the increase in population and consumption level much pressure have been
placed on natural resources (Mace et al., 2013) and the volume of waste generated have
rapidly increased with a significant amount of the waste been buried on landfills (Da-Cruz et
al., 2012). The more waste is being generated from the post-consumer phase of products the
more resources are wasted and the more the natural resources from which the raw materials
are extracted quickly diminishes if they are not used in sustainable manner.(Hyman et al.,
2013)

The alarming state of municipal solid waste management which were worsen by the high
volume of packaging waste, prompted policy makers in North America and Western Europe
to deem it necessary to enact laws that will ensure environmental sustainability of packaging
materials (McKerlie et al., 2006; Hanish 2000; Cardoso et al, 2013). The purpose of the
measures is to compel producers to be more environmentally conscious and to take full
responsibilities of the entire lifecycle of their products, especially in post-consumer phase
where most waste occur. The same story cannot be said about developing nations as many are
still struggling to provide the basic service of waste collection from households and so far
about only 50% of households in developing countries are served by the local waste
management authority (Stutz, 2008).

One of the oldest prohibitive laws and packaging legislations in the world is the Oregon
bottle bill act of 1971. It was enacted at a time when indiscriminate disposal of waste was the
order of the day and the city of Oregon and its water bodies were littered with empty
beverage containers. The bottle bill was introduced to discourage eco-unfriendly behavior by
the populace and to promote the reuse and recycle of used beverage containers (Cheng and

8
 Introduction and Background of Study

Chiou-nan, 2013). The bill charges both the consumers and producers of beverage drinks
with the responsibilities of reusing used beverage containers rather than to discard them
inappropriately. In the deposit based system, a mandatory deposit is on sold beverage drinks
and the deposits are only refundable when the empty beverage containers are returned to the
point of purchase or to the designated collection centres (Cheng and Chiou-nan, 2013).

In addition to the bottle bill act of 1971, there are other packaging waste legislations in
Europe such as the German Packaging Ordinance (GPO), EU directives 94/62/EC and
2004/12/EC, and the Finnish government decision on packaging and packaging waste
(962/1997). These legislations and couple of others will be further discussed in the next
chapter. Other notable legislations that have demonstrated the impact of the Extended
Producer Responsibility (EPR) policy and reverse logistics are, the EU Waste Electrical and
Electronic Equipment (WEEE) directive 2002/96/EC and the amended directive 2012/19/EU.
Both directives were introduced to make manufacturers of electrical products responsible for
the retrieval of products at the end of their life cycle from consumers for the purpose of
proper disposal, reuse, remanufacturing or recycling (Abdullah et al., 2014; McKerlie et al.,
2006).

The implication of these directives on businesses is that manufacturers are now paying more
attention to the environmental aspect of their businesses. Some businesses have even
embarked on products and systems design in order to take post-consumer products into
account (Spicer and Johnson, 2004). The alarming impacts of waste on nature can be curbed
in various ways and can be done on a product by product basis (Spicer and Johnson, 2004).

One of the approaches of being environmentally conscious is through the integration of the
traditional forward logistics with the Reverse Logistics (Gonzälez-Torre et al., 2004). This
practice integrates sustainability into supply chain by preserving the value of packaging
materials for as long as possible by reusing and reintegrating used beverage containers back
into the supply chain. Some scholars like (Kofoworola, 2007; Xuey and Chiou-nan, 2013)
also emphasize the importance of supply chain sustainability and condemn wasteful habits.

In addition, Kocabasoglu et al., (2007); Gonzalez-Torre and Adenso-Diaz, (2006) opine that
Reverse logistics (RL) was introduced in order to preserve the nature by reducing the demand
for virgin materials and to reduce wastes disposal on landfills. Moreover, reverse logistics
focuses on post-consumer waste which has some value in them that organizations can recover
and reintegrate into the supply chain as new resource (Britto and Dekker 2003).

9
 Introduction and Background of Study

Lai et al., (2013) lists waste management, recycling, reuse, reprocessing, materials recovery
and design as the methods of practicing reverse logistics. As table 1 illustrates, Rogers and
Tibben-Lembke (2001) further categorizes products and packaging as the two important areas
of reverse logistics and the set of activities that make up each area.

Table 1 Common activities of reverse logistics(Rogersand Tibben-Lembke, 2002)

Materials Reverse Logistics Activities
Products Products returned to supplier
Resell
Sell via outlet
Salvage
Recondition
Refurbish
Remanufacture
Reclaim materials
Recycle
Landfill
Packaging Packaging reuse
Refurbish
Reclaim materials
Recycle
Salvage

In the light of the advancement many western countries have achieved in the management of
municipal solid wastes, especially on the collection and reusing of used beverage containers.
Many developing nations are still struggling with the collection of municipal solid waste and
despite all the environmental laws that exist in many developing countries a significant
achievement have not been recorded in many developing nations (Ezeah and Roberts, 2014).
Furthermore, businesses in developing nations are no exception, as many are yet to come to
the realization that reverse logistics can be utilized as a strategic tool of competitiveness and
environmental sustainability (Oko and Anayo, 2013).

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 Introduction and Background of Study

1.1 Research Objectives

The aim of this study is to shed light on the current state of municipal solid waste
management with respect to beverage containers of soft and alcoholic drink (recyclable glass
bottles, aluminum cans and polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plastic bottles) in the city of
Lagos will also be examined.

In addition to that, this research will also investigate the disconnection between the point of
consumption/disposal of beverage drinks empties and the point where used beverage
containers (UBC) are recovered, reused and integrated back into supply chains. It is logical
that after consumption of beverage drinks, the empties should be discarded in an eco-friendly
manner but in reality such is not the case in the city of Lagos. A significant number of used
beverage containers are buried on landfills, dumped on road sides and even on water bodies,
which are in no way adding value to the systems. As a result of the challenges of beverage
containers collection in Lagos, a framework will be developed to sustainably manage the
collection of used beverage containers in Lagos, Nigeria.

This study aims to further elaborate on the contrasting features about waste collection in the
context of both developing and developed countries as presented in the proceeding section.
More so, a comparative study of two countries that fall into the two different worlds on the
issues of waste collection, the role of various stakeholders like governmental organizations
and consumers will be examined.

Furthermore, this study will address the research problem through a comparative study of a
top performing country that has the best practices of waste management designed in her
system with a country that is overwhelmed with the challenges of waste management.
Subsequently the following research questions will be answered using the same comparative
approach:

1. What is the definition of reverse logistics in the context of used beverage containers?
2. What are the roles of consumers in the reverse logistics of beverage containers?
3. How has government policies affected organizations reverse logistics decision in
Lagos, Nigeria?
4. How has government campaign or organizations’ public awareness program promote
the reverse logistics of beverage containers?

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 Introduction and Background of Study

1.2 Methods and Case Studies

This academic work is a comparative study of Helsinki and the city of Lagos. It employs
multiple sources of data to study the phenomenon from different perspectives and also to
cross validate the data collected.

In order to accommodate different opinions and to view the topic from different lenses, a
triangulation technique is employed for data collection. Ghauri et al., (1995) states that
triangulation is the combination of methodologies in the study of the same phenomenon and
to cross validate collected data. Triangulation combines both primary and secondary data and
as such this study will combine data from questionnaire survey, video documentary,
academic journals, waste legislations and public domain data to cross check and to validate
the findings of this research.

Furthermore, the inefficiencies in the management of municipal waste in the city of Lagos
and Nigeria would be identified as follows,

 Comparison of the waste management systems of both Lagos, Nigeria and Helsinki
Finland
 Analysis of the supply chain of beverage containers in the city of Lagos.

Lastly, recommendations for improvement will be made on the identified gaps and it shall be
based on the practices and standards that have helped Finland to move up on the waste
disposal hierarchy.

1.3 The Justification for Selecting the Two Cities

The city of Lagos was selected as a case study because of it significant importance to
Nigeria’s economy. Lagos is the former capital and the economy hub of Nigeria, and despite
its status, used beverage containers continues to constitute nuisance on streets and water
bodies of Lagos. In addition, in terms of municipal solid waste management (MSWM), Lagos
remains the pacesetter in the country and a learning point to other state in Nigeria (Ezeah and
Roberts, 2014).

However Lagos is yet to find a lasting solution to the empty aluminum cans, PET bottles and
plastic sachets that are littering and defacing the city of Lagos. It is illogical to discard any
item or substance that still has some value or that can be reused as raw materials (Cheng and
Chiou-nan, 2013) but that is not the case of empty beverage containers in the city of Lagos.

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 Introduction and Background of Study

Lagos generates 9,000 metric tons of waste daily (LAWMA, 2016) which includes used
beverage containers and there is high possibility that some of these waste are carelessly
disposed - of or are not completely collected from households by LAWMA employees.

The situation in Helsinki, Finland is contrast to that of Lagos in Nigeria. Finland is one of the
most sustainable countries in the world and is one of the places where the take back program
of beverage containers has been successfully implemented with 1.7 billion of beverage
containers been recycled yearly (PALPA, 2016). The circular economy of beverage container
in Finland has helped in promoting environmental sustainability through the recycling and
reusing of beverage containers. The recycling industry in Finland has created jobs and all
stakeholders are involved in the sustainable management of waste. (Helsinkitimes, 2014)

Though, from all parameters the city of Lagos cannot be compared directly with Helsinki in
terms of sustainable waste management but the policies, prohibitive measures, collection
process and consumers’ attitude to waste management are elements that are worthy of
emulation and should be a learning point for policy makers in Lagos.

Furthermore, the researcher has had a taste of the two cities, having lived most of my life in
Lagos and now studying in Helsinki gives me access to information and the practicalities of
waste management in both countries.

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 Introduction and Background of Study

1.4 Structure of the Thesis

The structure of this research work is illustrated in the diagram below.

•This
This chapter presents the background study, the scope and a brief analysis of
the research problem. In addition to that it comprises the methodology used
Chapter 1
and the research questions .
Introduction

• The theoretical framework is developed in this chapter, coupled with the

history of packaging and packaging waste legislation in north America and
Chapter 2 European Union countries. This chapter also shed light on the current
Literature practices of used beverage containers management in Lagos and Helsinki.
Review

•The
The research methodologies and description of the case studies were
presented in this chapter. Besides, it also include details of the survey and
Chapter 3 other sources of data used in the study .
Research
Methodology

•This
This chapter presents the empirical evidences and findings of the survey
conducted in the city of Lagos. The findings are presented in frequencies
Chapter 4
Findings
tables and charts.

•In
In this chapter, the research questions are analysed and conclusions are
Chapter 5 drawn from the survey data and other available data to understand the role
Discussion of consumers in the reverse chain of used beverage containers in Lagos.

•This
This section of the study presents the conclusion, limitations and the
Chapter 6 recommendations of the study.
Conclusion

Figure 1 The structure of the thesis

14
 Literature Review

2 Literature Review
In this chapter the concept of reverse logistics is defined from the point of view of value
recovery, reuse and the reintegration of used packaging waste back into supply chains. The
second part of this chapter will explain the different packaging and packaging waste
legislations in Europe and the motivations behind the first packaging law enacted in Europe.
Additionally, the theoretical framework will be developed in the third part using theory and
concepts from previous literatures and waste management legislations. The last part will shed
light on the management of beverage container deposit system in Finland and the
management of municipal solid waste in the city of Lagos.

2.1 The Definition of Reverse Logistics in the Context of this Study

Reverse logistics has evolved over the years and its definition too has changed from time to
time depending on the context it was used. The reasons for practicing reverse logistics varies
from industry to industry (Chan et al., 2012; Krumwiede and Sheu, 2002) and it has been
practiced in industries like photocopiers, single-use cameras, jet engine components, cellular
telephones, automotive parts, computer parts, steel, chemical, pharmaceuticals and refillable
containers (Ravi et al., 2005; Dowlatshahi, 2000).

Regardless of the industry that reverse logistics is being practiced they all share a common
goal of resources preservation through value recovery and reduction in the volume of waste
that ends up on landfills. (Kocabasoglu et al., 2007)

Reverse logistics is defined as the “Movement of goods from a consumer towards a producer
in a channel of distribution” (Pohlen and Farris 1992). The study is one of the pioneer
literatures on reverse logistics and emphasis is placed on recycling as a viable option to land
filling of waste and the distribution channel of reverse logistics. Carter and Ellram (1998)
defined reverse logistics from the environmental perspective as a process whereby companies
can become more environmentally efficient through recycling, reusing and reducing the
amount of materials used. The study further developed a comprehensive framework after
concluding that reverse logistics literatures that were available prior to 1998 were either
focusing on recycling or do not have a comprehensive conceptual framework.

“Reverse logistics encompasses the logistics activities all the way from used products no
longer required by the user to products again reusable in the market” (Fleischmann et
al.,1997). This study was conducted from the point of view of operations research and with

15
 Literature Review

emphasis on waste reduction and reusing of post-consumer products via logistics activities of
distribution planning, inventory management and production planning.

At a time when reverse logistics was still at the infancy stage, Stock (1999) highlighted the
inability of organizations to devote enough time on planning, implementing and controlling
of reverse logistics activities as factors responsible for their inability to achieve optimal
performance.

Rogers and Tibben-Lembke (1998) defined reverse logistics as “the process of planning,
implementing, and controlling the efficient, cost effective flow of raw materials, in-process
inventory, finished goods and related information from the point of consumption to the point
of origin for the purpose of recapturing value, or proper disposal”. This definition is an
elaborate one and is often used by scholars such as (Chan, 2007, Tibben-Lembke, 2002). The
literature further explains that remanufacturing and refurbishing activities may be part of the
definition of reverse logistics. In contrast to (Rogers and Tibben-Lembke, 1998),
Fleischmann et al., (1997) stated that products do not return to the original manufacturer of
the products and instead they are reintegrated into other supply chains.

However, Bernon and Cullen (2007), Bernon et al., (2011) and De Brito and Dekker (2003)
argued that post-consumer products do not only return to their point of origin, they could also
be channeled to designated recovery centers.

Spicer and Johnson (2004) further corroborated De Brito & Dekker’s (2003) position by
stating that, original equipment manufacturer (OEM) take-back, third-party take-back and
pooled take-back are the three approaches producers can perform extended producer
responsibility. The definition of (Rogers and Tibben-Lembke, 1998) is ideal for a closed-loop
supply chain where the original equipment manufacturer solely undertake the take back of its
products from consumers after their useful end of life.
Thienen et al., (2014) adopted the Reverse Logistics Executive Council’s (RLEC) definition
of reverse logistics, as “the process of planning, implementation and controlling backward
flows of raw materials, in process inventory, packaging and finished goods, from a
manufacturing, distribution or use point, to a point of recovery or point of proper disposal”.
The definition of reverse logistics executive council clearly addressed the issues of point of
origin and the point of recovery that was raised by (Britto and dekker 2003) in the (Rogers
and Tibben-Lembke, 1998), and also acknowledged packaging as one of reverse logistics
materials. Pohlen and Farris (1992) also stated that recyclable materials do not necessarily

16
 Literature Review

flow backwards through the same supply chain that supplied the goods but what is of prime
importance is that recyclable materials are remanufactured into recycled products. Further,
RLEC’s definition of reverse logistics accommodates the position of Pohlen and Farris
(1992) on the backflow of recyclable materials by considering both the open and closed loop
supply chains in the end of life phase of products.
In conclusion, the definition of reverse logistics by the Reverse Logistics Executive Council
is considered the most suitable for this study and particularly for the reverse logistics of used
beverage containers based on the analysis on the preceding paragraphs of this section.

2.2 Packaging Waste Legislations in European Countries

This section of the study will look into the genesis of packaging waste and the legislations
that were enacted to address the challenges of packaging waste in the society.

2.2.1 The German Packaging Ordinance

Prior to the enactment of the packaging ordinance, there was the Wastes Avoidance,
Recycling and Disposal Act (WARD) of 1986, and its strong point was the implementation of
waste management hierarchy of avoidance, reuse and recycling to the German society. The
practice was embraced by many households(OECD, 1998) and in Spite of people’s positive
attitude towards the Wastes Avoidance, Recycling and Disposal (WARD)Act of 1986,
packaging wastes in Germany still accounted for 30 percent of municipal solid wastes by
weight and 50 percent by volume (McKerlie et al., 2006; Hanisch 2000).

The failure of existing regulations to achieve a significant reduction in packaging waste that
end up on landfills was the reason that prompted the enactment of packaging ordinance of
1991. The ordinance shifted the cost of managing packaging wastes from the government to
producers, and this act alone paved the way for the introduction of a more sustainable and
eco-friendly packaging design by producers(McKerlie et al., 2006; Hanisch 2000).

The German packaging ordinance came into force in June 12, 1991 at a time when there was
shortage of landfills in Germany. The legislation was introduced to reduce the amount of
packaging materials that end up on landfills by compelling producers and distributors of
packaged goods to take back the packaging waste of the products they sold to consumers.
Producers of packaged products are required by law to either take back packaging waste of
their products individually or to join Duales System Deutschland (hereinafter, DSD)

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(McKerlie et al., 2006; OECD, 1998). DSD is a producer responsibility organization that is
charged with the responsibility of collecting, sorting and recycling of packaging wastes on
behalf of producers and distributors.

The process of using DSD collection systems usually begins with the producer paying an
annual license fee to DSD in order to use the green dot label, and this fee is determined by
the recyclability, volume and the weight of the packaging wastes of the products a producer
placed in the market (McKerlie et al., 2006). OECD (1998) states that producers that do not
belong to the DSD collection system are mandated to report the amount of packaging wastes
generated and provide evidence that the wastes are handled in the manner approved by the
ordinance.

2.2.2 European Union Packaging and Packaging Waste Directive (PPWD)

94/62/EC
The EU Packaging and Packaging Waste Directive (PPWD) 94/62/EC and Directive
2004/12/EC that was adopted in December 20 1994 and amended in February 11, 2004
respectively were introduced to make manufacturers and suppliers of packaging materials to
be accountable for the packaging waste of products they introduced to market.

These legislations also emphasize on recovery, reuse and recycling rather than the outright
disposal of packaging waste. According to Da-Cruz et al., (2012); Baughan and Frekko
(2004) both directives are legislative measures aimed towards establishing a harmonized best
practice among European Union countries. Moreover, the directives requires member states
to reduce the impact of packaging waste on the environment through eco-friendly packaging
design and the introduction of a recycling program which will involve all stakeholders in the
recovery, reuse or recycling process.

The EU directives did not only set the requirements and targets that member states must work
towards but members states must include the directives in their national policies and
timeframes were also set for accomplishment of each milestone. For instance directive
2004/12/EC demands a minimum recycling target of the following packaging wastes as table
2 indicates before 31st December 2008:

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Table 2 Recycling target (EU directive 2004/12/EC)

Materials Percent

Glass 66%

Aluminum 50%

Plastic 22.5%

Besides, both directives emphasize on the need for member states to implement information
systems in order to monitor and report the progress of the implementation of the directives.
Directive 94/62/EC also charged member states with the responsibilities of putting
mechanisms in place that will ensure smooth return and collection of packaging wastes.

2.2.3 Finnish Laws on Packaging and Packaging Waste

This section of the thesis will shed light on the policies that were put in place to promote the
principle of EPR in the Finnish society. Finland is one of the European Union countries that
have implemented the policy of Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) on packaging and
packaging waste. The EPR is an environmental strategy that is employed to reduce the
negative externalities of business on the environment.

2.2.3.1 Waste Act (646/2011 and Amendment 528/2014)

The act cuts across different categories of waste but the one that is relevant to this study is the
packaging and packaging waste. The packaging and packaging waste section of the act is
more or less compliance to the EU directive 94/62/EC which mandated member countries to
ensure that the directive reflects in their national law.

Section 72 of the act forbids the littering of waste in the environment and further charges all
stakeholders on the obligation to keep waste separate in order to promote their reuse and not
constitute a threat to public health and safety. In addition, section 62 of the act also set
conditions for the formation of producer responsibility organization and also stated how a
producer fulfill its producer responsibility by joining a return system which act on their
behalf to fulfill their environmental responsibility.

Under section 68 of the act, producers or importers of beverage containers can either
individually or jointly establish a deposit return system for collection of empty containers and
to fulfill the take back responsibility imposed on them by the law. It is not mandatory for all

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producers to establish a deposit return system of their own, and rather than set up a new one
producers can join an existing deposit system to fulfill their constitutional obligation.
Furthermore, beverage distributors are obliged to collect used beverage containers from
consumers and this responsibility confers a dual role on the distributor which is a distributor
of goods to consumers and also the supplier of resource to producers.

2.2.3.2 Act on Excise Duty on Certain Beverage Packages

The act on excise duty on certain beverage containers was introduced in Finland on January
1st, 2005. The act is one of the legislative measures to promote the recovery of packaging
waste and to protect the environment. There is financial incentive in form of tax exemption
for producers, packers and importers of soft or alcoholic drinks that have plans of recovering
used beverage packages through deposit return system. However beverage containers that are
not part of the deposit return system or non-returnable containers are charged a packaging tax
of 0.51 cents per liter as the cost of environmental externalities and the recovery of the
containers. This form of taxation is aimed towards discouraging wasteful culture by
stakeholders and to channel beverage empties from consumers to different supply chains for
the purpose of refilling, recycling and remanufacturing of new products (YMPARISTO,
2016).

2.2.3.3 Government Decision on packaging and Packaging Waste (962/1997)

This decision came into existence on October 23, 1997; and it is a more or less a compliance
of EU directives 94/62/EU and 2008/98/EC. The legislation set the obligations for all
stakeholders and guidelines for the smooth implementation of the waste management
hierarchy as prescribed by directive 2008/98/EC. Another strong point of the law is the
responsibilities of taking back packaging wastes from the consumers that is placed on
producers and packers of packaged products. However, producers can delegate this
responsibility by joining a consortium of producer responsibility organization, which is an
organization that acts on behalf of members in the collection and recovery of packaging
wastes. The decision also stipulated the minimum material recovery target and a deadline of
June 30, 2001 were set for the achievement of the following: reduction of packaging waste at
6%, reuse at 82%, recovery at 31% and recycling of packaging waste at 2%. Moreover, the
legislation also prescribed the recycling of 48% of glass, 25% of aluminum and 45% of
plastic must be recycled before the end of June 2001.

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Furthermore, the law promotes the usage of eco-friendly packaging designs and materials for
products and also stipulates that manufacturers should adequately inform consumers on the
procedures for collection of packaging wastes. All stakeholders are also compelled to report
the quantity of packaging wastes retrieved from consumers to the Finnish Environment
Institute for the purpose of monitoring the achievement of the set goals.

2.2.4 The Finnish Beverage containers Deposit Return System

Suomen Palautuspakkaus Oy (hereinafter,PALPA) is a producer responsibility organization,
established in 1996 to oversee the return of aluminum cans for recycling and it is the largest
operator of deposit-based return system in Finland. In the year 2008 PALPA’s service was
extended to include PET bottles. PALPA is owned by large retailers and breweries in Finland
and it perform the functions of collection, recycling and promoting the reuse of used
beverage containers on behalf of the owners.

Producers and importers of beverage packages can only transfer their environmental
responsibility to PALPA after the payment of subscription fees and recycling fees which
depends on the packaging materials. A registered producer or importers of beverage packages
are allowed to use PALPA marks which are either printed directly on the beverage container
or on the product’s label. Information about the deposit and the beverage containers are
embedded on the marks and they are recognizable and readable by PALPA’s reverse vending
machines.

PALPA utilizes different channels for the collection of used beverage containers from
consumers. In the case of refillable glass bottles which are usually returned to breweries in
crates, are either returned directly by customers or they are being picked up from customers
or retailers by the same suppliers that supplies the products. The Reverse Vending Machine
(RVM) is another channel for the collection of beverage empties and they are usually located
in accessible centers like grocery stores for consumers’ easy return.

In Finland, there is a mandatory deposit on every unit of beverage drinks sold in beverage
packages. The deposits serve as incentives for consumers to return empty beverage containers
to the manufacturers of containers via the RVM available in retail outlets. On the return of
the beverage empties the RVM issues a receipt that acknowledge the monetary value of
empties returned and the receipts are redeemable at the same grocery store the containers are
returned.

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The Finnish society has a culture of household waste separation and children are taught about
recycling and waste separation right from childhood both at home and in schools. Majority of
residents in Finland have positive attitudes towards the returning of used beverage containers
and in the preservation of the environment. According to (PALPA, 2016) Finland has a high
return rate on beverage containers and so far, an impressive 95% of aluminum cans are
recycled, 98% of refillable glass bottles are reused, 93% of plastic bottles and 89% of
recyclable glass bottles are recycled.

Suomen palautuspakkaus Oy PALPA is one of the producer responsibility organizations in

Finland charged with the responsibility of managing the post-consumer phase of packaging
products. Others are illustrated in Table 3 with the packaging materials they are responsible
for.

Table 3 Approved producer organization for packaging products (YMPARISTO, 2016)

Organizations Materials
1 Mepak-Recycling Ltd Metal

2 Puupakkausten Kierratys PPK Oy Wood

3 Suomen Kerayslasiyhdistys Ry Glass

4 Suomen Kuitukierratys Oy Fibre packaging

5 Suomen Palautuspakkaus Oy PALPA Deposit beverage packaging

6 The Finnish Plastics Recycling ltd Plastics

2.3 Process Analysis of the Finnish Deposit Return system for

Beverage Containers

The supply chain of beverage containers begins from the producers of beverage drinks who
produce and distribute the products through the suppliers to businesses and retail outlets.
However before the products are distributed to the market, recycling fees are paid by the
producers on every unit of beverage produced to PALPA, who oversees the collection of used
beverage containers from consumers. On the receipt of the supplies from suppliers, the retail
outlets or stores pays the producers the deposits on the beverages delivered to them
(LAWMA, 2015).

Additionally, the consumers who are the links between the forward and reverse logistics buy
soft and alcoholic drinks from the retail stores while paying deposits indirectly on every unit

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bought. Nevertheless, the deposits are returned to the consumers provided the beverage
empties are returned to the stores or directly to PALPA by business customers. As illustrated
in figure 2, PALPA coordinates the movement of beverage containers in the supply chain by
providing a platform where stakeholders can interact with one another, thereby closing the
supply chain of beverage containers in Finland.

Figure 2 The flow of beverage containers and deposits in the Finnish market

2.4 Status of Solid Waste Management in Developing Countries

Municipal solid waste management has evolved over the years in many developed countries
and most of the success recorded in this sector was due to the continuous review of
environment policies by the appropriate authority. However, the situation is not the same in
many developing nations. Solid waste management in most developing countries is in a crisis
situation and the unsustainable rate at which waste and population grow, further complicates
the situation by making waste management a challenge for government at all levels. (Ezeah
and Roberts, 2014; Ogwueleka, 2009)

The problem of poor waste management is more prominent in urban areas of developing
countries and this is as a result of the high rate of rural-urban migration (Imam et al., 2008 ),
improvement in lifestyle and increase in income and consumption(Ogwueleka, 2009; Abila,
2014).

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Municipalities in developing countries spend as much as 20-50% of their recurrent budget on

solid waste management and despite the budgetary allocation on waste management less
than 50% of the inhabitants are served while 30-60% of the urban solid waste is left
uncollected (worldbank, 2016; Stutz, 2008). The inefficiencies of waste management
authorities in many developing countries have led to the inappropriate disposal and burning
of municipal solid waste by communities that are denied of the services of the waste
management authorities.

In most developing countries, there exist the informal sector and they are popularly called
different names like scavengers, waste pickers, garbage pickers or cart pushers (Brix-Asala et
al., 2016). In communities where the formal sector i.e. the waste management authority could
not provide services, cart pushers step in to provide an alternative to the people by collecting
waste from household to household for a fee.

The inadequate funding and lack of technical support have rendered many waste management
authorities in sub-Saharan African Countries inefficient and have limited their capabilities to
the collection and disposal of waste on landfills. The disposal of municipal solid waste on
landfills is considered less expensive and less eco-friendly compared to other options of
waste management that are practiced in developed nations. Moreover, Recycling activities in
many developing countries is usually done by agents of the informal sector that are popular
known as scavengers, waste pickers or waste collectors, who picks valuable materials from
landfills and sell to the recyclers .(Stutz, 2008)

An average informal waste collector performs the function of sorting of mixed waste by
separating the recyclables from other types of waste in the open dumpsite before the
recovered items are sold to the recyclers. However, the activities of the informal waste
collectors have received disapproval from different quarters because of the inappropriate
method they dispose collected waste and the unhygienic manner they conduct their
businesses. (Oguntoyinbo, 2012)

Unlike many developed countries that have successfully utilized legislations and consumers
demand for eco-friendly products to drive sustainable business practices and waste
management systems. According to Ezeah and Roberts (2014) environmental and waste
management laws in Sub-Saharan Africa countries failed to achieve their intended purpose
because of implementation problem.

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2.4.1 Packaging Waste Legislations in Nigeria

The history of environmental policies and waste management in Nigeria is dated back to
1987 after the discovery of toxic waste that was dumped in the Niger delta area of Nigeria.
This discovery prompted the Nigerian government to establish the Federal Environmental
Protection Agency (FEPA) in the year 1988 and by 1999 the Federal Ministry of
Environment (FME) to perform and absorb the functions of FEPA. The National
Environmental Standards and Regulation Enforcement Agency (hereinafter, NESREA) were
established in 2007 under the supervision of the Federal Ministry of Environment, Housing
and Urban Development. NESREA was established by an act of the parliament to oversee all
environmental related issues in Nigeria and to repeal the decree that led to the establishment
of FEPA. (Ezeah and Roberts, 2014; Ijaiya and Joseph, 2014)

The problems of empty beverage containers in the Nigerian society began in the tail end of
last century and the existing environmental laws and regulations as at that time do not cater
for this kind of problems. There have been different environmental laws and policies on
waste management in Nigeria but there has not been any national law or policy on sustainable
waste management (Afun, 2009). According to Abila and Kantola (2013) waste management
policies in Nigeria are weak, obsolete, poorly implemented waste management and are not
revisited or review to reflect the reality on ground.

Osibanjo (2016) also opined that the absence of government waste policies particularly the
ones that compel producers to use recycled products, as the reason why many stakeholders
still perceive many recyclable materials as waste. And as a result of the absence of
sustainable waste management policies, packaging producers have shown little or no interest
in the management of packaging waste. Likewise the consumers that are supposed to be
suppliers of secondary materials do not play any role as far as the reverse logistics of
beverage containers is concerned (Abila and Kantola, 2013; Oko and Anayo, 2013).

2.5 The Situation of Used Beverage Containers in the City of Lagos

Waste management in some developing countries has really improved but not in the same
level as their counterparts in developed nations (Courtois, 2012) and much success has not
been achieved in the backward flow of used beverage containers.

In the recent past, Lagos state government has undertaken some reforms to restructure waste
management in the city of Lagos. The reform did not only reposition Lagos state Waste

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Management Authority (LAWMA) to deliver better services, it has also attracted both foreign
and local investors through Public-private partnership (PPP) and Private sector participation
(PSP). Other outcome of the reform are, the acquisition of waste management equipments,
the reduction of landfills from 16 to 5 and the establishment of composite and recycling
facilities within the city of Lagos (Ezeah and Roberts, 2014; LAWMA, 2016).

In Nigeria there is no known producer responsibility program or government policies for

collection of used aluminum cans, PET bottles and plastic sachet from consumers neither is
any incentive for consumers to return empty beverage containers. Aluminum cans and PET
bottles do not have any other conditions attached to their sales aside from the payment of the
cost price which also include both the beverage and the container. The absence of reverse
logistics or agents for collection of aluminum cans and PET bottles by producers of beverage
drinks or government has taken a heavy toll on the environment in the city of Lagos and not
even waste pickers, LAWMA or the PSP operators could do much to change the situation. As
the streets, highways, roadsides, water bodies and drainages are all littered with empty
beverage cans and plastics (Oko and Anayo, 2013; Appendix D).

Unlike aluminum cans and PET bottles, the supply chains of many producers of refillable
glass bottled drinks in Nigeria have reverse channel for collection of used glass bottles from
consumers. The collection process and channel has been in operation for many years and it
requires consumers to present empty glass bottle of the same brand and quantity they intend
to buy before any exchange can take place. This condition is also applicable to all actors in
the distribution channel, and it is mandatory that distributors, wholesalers and retailers must
own crates of empty glass bottles for exchange with filled glass bottled drinks in the course
of receiving supplies from the producers of beverage drinks (Oko and Anayo, 2013).

The alternative for bottles exchanges in the course of buying drinks is that consumers have to
deposit a certain amount of money before they can buy glass bottle drinks and the deposits
are refunded on the return of the empty glass bottle of the drink bought. The empty glass
bottle flows backward to the producers through the same forward logistics channel that
supplies the products.

The recovery of aluminum cans and PET bottles in the city of Lagos is a bit complicated and
most of the recycling activities depend on the efforts of agents of the informal sector. Most
waste management departments in developing nations are incapacitated by financial
constraints and as a result waste management authorities in cities of developing nations like

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Lagos focuses on the collection and disposal of waste on Landfills while the waste pickers
and scavengers perform the recovering of recyclable materials such as aluminum cans, glass
bottles and PET bottles from the waste stream (Abila and Kantola, 2013; Stutz, 2008).

2.5.1 Collection and Recycling of Used Beverage Containers (UBC) in Lagos

The Lagos state waste management authority (LAWMA) has a buy-back program for
recyclable materials where the informal sector agents can sell the recyclables they recovered
from landfills for a token amount as depicted in table 4, to the authority. The buy-back
program is unpopular among households and the buyback-centers are located in Olushosun
landfill site and Oyingbo buy-back center which realistically cannot serve a population of
about 17 million people.

In addition, there are 8 mini recycling banks located within the city of Lagos but these banks
are only for collection of empty beverage containers as shown in appendix C. These mini
recycling banks could be a turn on for households in the vicinities of the recycling banks to
return used beverage cans for recycling.

Furthermore, a couple of small and medium enterprises in the city of Lagos operate as waste
buyers and their approach is door to door collection of recyclables like PET bottles, glass
bottles and aluminum cans in exchange for financial incentives, food stuffs or gift items
(bbcnews, 2014; Wecyclers, 2016). Aside from the door to door collection, waste buyers do
buy recyclable waste from waste pickers which they sort into different material types before
they are sold to users in the formal sector of the economy (Brix-Asala, et al., 2016).

However, the activities of the waste buyers is still limited to few households in the city and
considering the growing population and consumption level of people in Lagos state, there is
still much to be done in the retrieval of used beverage containers from end consumers.

Table 4 Buy-back price (LAWMA, 2016)

Recyclables Price
₦/KG €/KG
1 LDPE nylon ₦30:00 €0.0965547

2 PET bottles ₦20:00 €0.0643465

3 Breakable bottles ₦5:00 €0.0160863

4 Cartons ₦5:00 €0.0160863

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The conversion of Naira to Euro was based on the exchange rate available on the website of
XE currency converter www.xe.com of Monday June 27, 2016. (€1: ₦ 310.824)

2.5.2 Analysis of the Supply Chain of Beverage Containers

The supply chain of beverage containers in the Nigerian market begins with the suppliers of
raw materials who source for raw materials that are used in the production of beverage
containers. Unfortunately the chain ends with the consumers of beverage containers because
of the challenges of collecting beverage empties after consumption. A significant number of
used beverage containers are discarded inappropriately in the city of Lagos daily and there is
no clearly defined waste management plans either by the government or the packaging
industry for the collection and reuse of UBC (Abila and Kantola, 2013).

Consequently, the absence of sustainable waste management program on packaging waste

has created a gap in the circular flow of packaging materials and thereby resulted in the
disconnection between the consumers and the recycling industry that converts beverage
empties into useful resources. The disconnection between these two stakeholders has led to
the emergence of the agents of the informal sector, popularly known as scavengers or waste
pickers. The waste pickers are motivated to perform recycling activities because of the value
inherent in used beverage containers which offers them a means of livelihood.

Figure 3 below illustrates the flow of beverage containers in the city of Lagos and the
possible channels that empty containers can be retrieved from consumers for another
productive use.

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Figure 3 The current collection system of used beverage containers in Lagos

2.6 Mapping of Theoretical Framework

The theoretical framework of this study is based on the interaction of three different concepts
and they are as follows:

1. The reverse logistics hierarchy/ waste disposition hierarchy theory (3R), Carter and
Ellram 1998; EU directive 2008/98/EC)

Article 4 of EU directive 2008/98/EC prioritized the order of waste management as

illustrated in figure 4.

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Figure 4 EU directive 2008/98/EC

In addition Carter and Ellram (1998) opined that “reverse logistics is the process
whereby companies can become more environmentally efficient through recycling,
reusing and reducing the amount of materials used.

2. The drivers of reverse logistics theory (De Brito and Dekker, 2003; Akdogan and
Coskun, 2012)

“The drivers of reverse logistics activities, three main factors can be classified as the
drivers of RL which are economics, legislation and corporate citizenship” (Akdogan
and Coskun, 2012) pp. 1640

Further, De Brito and Dekker (2003) adopted a framework titled the driving triangle
of reverse logistics which is illustrated in figure 5, to highlight the motivation for
reverse logistics adoption.

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Figure 5 Driving triangle for reverse logistics (De Brito and Dekker, 2003)

3. Consumers as material supplier concept (Gonzalez-Torre and Adenso-Diaz, 2006).

This particular concept is the author’s initiative to describe the importance of
consumers in the reverse supply chain of beverage containers. Moreover, it is
supported with extract from the work of Gonzalez-Torre and Adenso-Diaz (2006)
;(2002).

“Customer is the first link in the reverse supply chain, and his or her behavior with
respect to separating household waste is essential in order to close the circle”
(Gonzalez-Torre and Adenso-Diaz, 2002 p. 399)

“ For the reverse flow to function properly, it is essential for consumers to return the
product once it is no longer used and companies have to assume the alternatives of
recovering these returns” (Gonzalez-Torre and Adenso-Diaz, 2006 p. 531)

The interaction of the components of the above theoretical framework is illustrated in figure
6 and the subsequent sections of this chapter discuss the concepts.

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Figure 6 The reverse logistics framework of beverage containers

2.7 Reverse Logistics/ Waste Disposition Hierarchy (3R)

Carter and Ellram (1998) emphasizes that reduce, reuse and recycle (3R) are the three
approaches of becoming environmentally efficient. Some scholars such as (Memon, 2010;
Van Hoek, 1999; Mandaraka and Kormentza, 2000) also agreed with the position of (Carter
and Ellram, 1998) which states that the 3R approach are the most sustainable means of
managing municipal solid waste. The reverse logistics hierarchy as shown in figure 7 is
similar to the wastes management hierarchy prescribed in EU directive 2008/98/EC which
prioritized prevention, reuse and recycle over landfill disposal. Ewijk and Stegemann (2016)
emphasizes that the hierarchy is a priority order for at least three waste management options.
Moreover, Usapein and Chavalparit (2014) also describe the 3R as the hierarchy of waste
management that is employed to manage increasing waste generation and to achieve a zero
waste or zero land filling goal.

Many organizations believe that the process of reverse logistics begins with recycling,
whereas the process actually began from the early stage of product design, process design and
packaging design (Cullen et al., 2010). The prevention of waste from the design phase does
not only reduce materials usage, it also minimizes the volume of waste from generation to
disposal (Carter and Ellram, 1998; EU directive 2008/98/EC). Aside from the EU directives
and some national laws that promotes the reduction, reuse and the recycling (3R) of
packaging waste; some scholars have also shed light on the 3R and even went a step further
by relating it with other concepts.

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Memon (2010) described the terms; Reduce, Reuse and Recycle as the 3R approach of wastes
management, and incorporated the 3R with the concept of Integrated Solid Wastes
Management (ISWM) to optimize the management of solid wastes from all wastes generating
sectors. Bernon and Cullen (2007) also incorporated elements of the 3R with three
management approach namely, integration, collaboration and evaluation to manage post-
consumer returns.

2.7.1 Reducing of Packaging Waste

The reduction of packaging materials occupies the top of the waste disposition hierarchy and
this is best done at the developmental stage of product’s lifecycle. Any decision pertaining to
packaging designs, product design or process design that was taken at the development stage
of the product will have reverse logistics implications throughout the product’s lifespan
(Tibben-Lembke, 2002). Reducing entails the minimization of packaging materials at source
and the design of environmental friendly packages for products to facilitate smooth reuse or
recovery of packaging materials (Carter and Ellram, 1998).

Reduction of packaging waste at source has been classified into qualitative and quantitative.
The qualitative reduction is the total elimination or the reduction to the barest minimum of
any eco-unfriendly or toxic substances from packaging waste. While the quantitative source
reduction of packaging materials comprises of the design of a long lasting product, and the
using of lightweight packaging materials that will greatly reduce the volume of packaging
waste generated at every stage of the product’s lifecycle (Mandaraka and Kormentza, 2000).

Furthermore, the obligations of packaging waste management is placed on the packaging

industry (Da-Cruz et al., 2014; Eichstadt et al., 1999) and this responsibility incentivize the
players in packaging industry to design lightweights packaging with high reusability and
recyclability level and which are of acceptable standards to all stakeholders.

2.7.2 Reusing of Packaging Materials

The reusability of empty beverage containers in this context refers to the ability to directly
reuse used beverage containers without putting them through any materials recovery process.
Reuse is described as “any operation by which packaging is designed to accomplish within its
lifespan a certain number of repeated uses, or is refilled or reused for a purpose similar to its
original purpose, irrespective of whether auxiliary products are present on the market
enabling the packaging to be refilled; such reused packaging becomes packaging waste when
no longer in use” (EU directive 94/62/EC; GDPPW/962).

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The reusing of packaging materials is the second best option on the hierarchy of waste
framework after the prevention of waste via reduction (EU directive 2008/98/EC). Packaging
reusability is best done also when provision has been made for its reusability in the design
phase of the product. It also entails the logistics involved in returning used beverage
containers or glass bottles to the place of production, where they are washed and refilled in an
environmentally sound manner that do not compromise public health. Glass bottle is a typical
example of reusable materials, they are 100% reusable through bottle refilling (Tibben-
Lembke, 2002) and some plastic bottles are also refillable. The reusing of packaging
materials afford organizations the opportunity to save cost on raw materials and helps to
preserve nature (Mandaraka and Kormentza, 2000; EU directive 94/62/ec).

2.7.3 Recycling of Packaging materials

The recycling of beverage containers is a better alternative and constitutes a lesser
environmental burden compared to land filling or incineration of beverage containers. In the
case of packaging materials that are not designed for reuse, recycling still remains the viable
option to recover the value in them. However, the recycling of beverage containers is easier
when the packaging material is designed to be recyclable right from the developmental phase
of the product. (Mandaraka and Kormentza, 2000) The recycling of packaging materials
reduces waste and conserves natural resources and energy that would have been utilized in
the extraction and conversion of virgin raw materials into a useable form (Coelho et al., 2011;
Ezeah et al., 2013).

In addition, recycling afford producers of beverage containers the opportunity to generate

secondary raw materials from used containers, which can substitute primary raw materials for
the production of new packaging materials or reintegrated into other supply chains to produce
goods like glass wool, cellular glass, textiles, umbrellas, bicycle wheels and kitchen utensils
(Barrera and Cruz-Mejia, 2014; PALPA, 2016; Coelho et al., 2011). Besides the conservation
of natural resources, recycling also create job opportunities for the employed. However,
recycling programs are cost intensive and every phase of recycling comes with a significant
cost which can overwhelm the producers of beverage containers if the costs are not
adequately catered for in the recycling plan (Da-Cruz et al, 2014; Hanisch, 2000).

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Figure 7 Reverse logistics hierarchy (Carter and Ellram, 1998)

2.8 Drivers of Reverse Logistics

The three drivers of reverse logistics, namely, legislation, economic and corporate citizenship
are connected to one another and the boundaries between each may be blurry (Alvarez-Gil et
al., 2007). Dowlatshahi (2000) opined that reverse logistics focuses on environmental and
economic goals and the realization of one does not impede the realization of the other.

Organizations practice reverse logistics for many reasons and some of them are, profit
potentials, regulatory pressure, social pressure and customers/ stakeholders’ pressure.
However, from the many adoption examples, (Thienen et al., 2014; Abdullah et al., 2014)
opined that regulatory pressure or legislation is the main driver of reverse logistics.

2.8.1 Legislation
Government legislations and policies have prompted many organizations to have a rethink of
their supply chain strategy and the way they do business. The extent in which regulations
have influenced reverse logistics decision in many organizations cannot be overemphasized.
As a matter of fact a significant number of organizations engage in sustainable practices like
reverse logistics because of the fear of not violating environmental or packaging legislation
regulations (Abdullah et al., 2014; Carter and Ellram, 1998; Dowlatshahi, 2000). In some
product categories, consumers are obliged to legally or voluntarily return used products to
producers after their useful end of life.

35
 Literature Review

A significant number of these environmental regulations are based on the concept of

extended producer responsibility and it charges producers of commodities with the
responsibility of taking back the post-consumer products or the residues of products they
place into the market. Besides the taking back of post-consumer products or used beverage
containers, government legislations also set implementation guidelines such as the material
requirements for packaging, the recovery of used products and the manner at which firms
should dispose of hazardous materials. Handfield et al., (2005) emphasizes the importance of
government participation through legislations and consumers participation in reverse logistics
process as the prerequisite for a sustainable supply chain. Some of the environmental
regulations that have shaped the approach of doing business are, European Union directives
such as, Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive (WEEE), Packaging and
Packaging Waste Directives (PPW), and the Restriction of Use of Certain Hazardous
Substances Directive (RoHS).

2.8.2 Economic
The recovery of post-consumer products or materials in reverse logistics affords
manufacturers the opportunity to save costs and to reduce the usage of virgin raw materials in
their production line. The economic and environmental reasons of practicing reverse logistics
go hand in hand with one another, and the practice of one gives organizations the benefit to
have other. According to the report of Hyman et al., (2013) “recycling a ton of aluminum
saves 1.3 tons of bauxite residues, 15 m3 of cooling water, 0.86 m3 of process water and 37
barrels oil”. The statement above is a good reason for businesses to practice reverse logistics.
As it does not only reduce the cost of doing business for organizations it also contributes to
the environmental well-being.

A significant number of the organizations practicing reverse logistics today do so based on

economic reasons and according to Dowlatshahi (2000) “producers that remanufacture saves
an estimate of about 40% to 60% of the cost of manufacturing a new product and with 20%
less effort”. Aluminum cans, PET and glass bottles are examples of sustainable resources that
can be recycled repeatedly to manufacture new containers or to be used in other supply chain.

In addition, the reutilization of post-consumer products helps to decrease the volume of waste
that might either end up on landfills or littered the streets and also saves the state and
organizations the cost of waste management.

36
 Literature Review

Further, aside from the opportunity to recovery spare parts from used products, organizations
can increase their revenue by reselling refurbished or remanufactured post-consumers
products to improve their profitability.

2.8.3 Corporate Citizenship

Corporate citizenship is defined as organizations search for sustainable development from an
environmental and social point of view (Alvarez-Gil et al., 2007) without jeopardizing firms’
opportunity to make profit. These days organizations are not only assessed based on their
productivity or profitability, as many consumers in the developed world are now concerned
about organizations environmental performance.

The pursuits of corporate citizenship afford organizations the possibilities of achieving the
economic benefit of reverse logistics as the drivers of RL are somehow connected to each
other. (Alvarez-Gil et al., 2007) Moreover, an environmental friendly organization that has
its products in recyclable or reusable containers is not only contributing to waste reduction in
the community by reusing disposed containers to manufacture new ones. The organization is
also creating jobs for the local recyclers and an opportunity for the poor in the community to
make money by picking and selling disposed containers. (Hyman et al., 2013)

Furthermore, many organizations in developed countries have come to the realization that
their commitment to sustainable development is a competitive tool that has the potential to
positively improve the image of the company (Abdullah et al., 2014).

2.9 Consumers Involvement

It is wasteful to discard waste or materials that can still be reused or recovered to

manufacture new product to the nature. A significant number of waste legislations and
directives around the globe require consumers to voluntarily or legally return products after
their useful end of life for value recovery and reuse (Breen, 2006). Besides legislations
consumers’ participation in reverse logistics or recycling programs depends on individual
consumer and the values they hold on the environment.

There are circumstances where consumers exert pressure on producers to take back the post-
consumer materials of their products and this was done out of their genuine concern for the
environment. (Gonzalez-Torre and Adenso-Diaz, 2006). Consumers’ involvement is
important for the successful implementation of reserve logistics and every recycling program
relies on consumers for the supply of its inputs. (Ravi and Shankar, 2015)

37
 Literature Review

Cheng and Chiou-nan (2013) identified the reasons why consumers partake in reverse
logistics programs as the extrinsic incentives and the intrinsic motives. The extrinsic
incentives is when the consumers are financially motivated to return post-consumer products
for reuse or for recycle (Yeh and Vaughn, 2008) and the level of products return is usually
proportionate to the amount of refunds or the value of incentive on post-consumer product.
The extrinsic incentives could be in the form of monetary value, tickets, and coupons or
lotteries. While the intrinsic motive is done out of environmental concerns and consumers
return post-consumer product because they feel it is the right thing to do and it contributes to
sustainable development.

In a society where consumers display positive attitude toward the recycling of post-consumer
products, such society will enjoy a sustainable and viable recycling industry that is fueled
with the regular supply of beverage empties from households. On the other hand in a society
where consumers do not have regard for waste management guidelines, it is the people and
the environment that suffers the consequences of poor waste management. (Anderson and
Brodin,2005)

38
 Research Methodology

3 Research Methodology
This section of the study provides an overview of the research methods, the description of
cases and the data collection methods. In addition, comparison of the waste management
system in Helsinki and Lagos will be compared and the present status of beverage container
supply chains will be analyzed in this chapter. Firstly, a description of the case studies is
presented followed by the details of the survey.

3.1 The description of the Case Studies

The two case studies were selected to reflect the realities of two different worlds; one of them
represents the advanced societies where best practices of waste management are designed in
the system. While the other represents the developing nations of this world that have not yet
come to the realization that waste are resources that can be reused as secondary materials.

3.1.1 The city of Lagos

Lagos is one of the most populous cities in the world with a population 11.1 million people in
2005 and was projected to reach an estimate of 17 m by the year 2015 (Morka, 2007). It is the
smallest state in Nigeria in terms of geographical size, it is approximately 3577km 2 and lies
between latitudes 60 52 and longitudes 30 37 (Soladoye and Ajibade, 2014).

Lagos state was the former administrative capital of Nigeria until 1990 when the capital was
changed to Abuja. However, the relocation of the capital to Abuja did not change the status
of Lagos as the commercial centre and the centre for economic growth in Nigeria. The city
of Lagos takes pride in its ability to accommodate over 2000 manufacturing industries and
over 200 financial institutions despite being the smallest state in Nigeria with about 22% of
its size as water bodies (Lagosstate, 2016; Soladoye and Ajibade, 2014).

Despite the size of Lagos, the population of people and waste generation continue to grow in
an unsustainable rate and Lagos State Waste Management Authority (LAWMA) do not have
a pool of unlimited resources to keep up with the collection and disposal of waste at this
unsustainable rate. According to LAWMA, a total of 9,000 metric tons of waste are
generated in Lagos on daily basis.

3.1.2 Helsinki
Helsinki is the largest city in Finland and also doubles as the administrative capital of Finland
and the centre of the Helsinki metropolitan area. Helsinki metropolitan area comprises of

39
 Research Methodology

Helsinki, Espoo, Kauniainen and Vantaa with total inhabitants of 1,122,101 and occupies a
land space of 745km2. Helsinki metropolitan area is Finland’s economic power house, home
to more than 10 higher institutions of learning and a key tourist’s hub in Finland. Helsinki
metropolitan area in 2015 generate 312.8 tons of waste daily, which is an improvement of the
previous year in which 517 tons was generated (BALTICICA, 2016; HEL, 2016).

3.2 Methods and Data collection

A comparative study is considered appropriate for this study because of the nature of the
phenomenon of this thesis which has to be studied from different point of view. A
comparison of the practices in Lagos with the best practices that is obtainable in Helsinki and
Finland will also be analyzed using the elements of waste management prescribed by Diaz et
al., (2005). According to Hancock and Algozzine (2006) the insights and knowledge gained
from case study analysis can directly influence or be used as a tool for policy making and in
designing procedures.

3.2.1 Primary Data

A questionnaire survey was the main source of primary data used in gaining insight into the
waste management situation in Lagos. A total of 150 questionnaires were administered in the
city of Lagos, precisely in Lagos mainland division of the state and 94 of them were returned
fully answered while 13 others were returned incomplete and the remaining 43 were never
returned by respondents. The questionnaires were randomly distributed to households and
students in two of the higher institutions of learning in Lagos state. The institutions are
Lagos state polytechnic which is located in Oshodi/Isolo local government and Yaba College
of technology in Lagos mainland.

In total 50 questionnaires were distributed in the two institutions and 41 of them were
returned. The remaining 100 questionnaires were administered on households with 53 of
them returned and completely answered. A higher return rate was recorded in the batch
distributed in the institutions of learning than the ones distributed to households and the
reason was because the questionnaires were personally handed to respondents in the
institutions to answer and were personally collected in the same day.

The questionnaire was designed using a 5 item Likert scale which according to (Croasmun
and Ostrom, 2011) is used for measuring self efficacy and for assessment of attitudes. The
questionnaire provides the respondents a scale which ranges from strongly agree to strongly

40
 Research Methodology

disagree and the middle point titled undecided. The questions of the survey are closed ended
and were developed using insights gained from past literatures on waste management, reverse
logistics and recycling in developing nations.

3.2.2 Secondary Data

A couple of secondary data were employed in this study to shed light on the phenomenon that
is being studied and to analyze the problem of this study from different backgrounds. The
chapter two of this study is a composition of different sources of secondary data and they are
all open data. Some of which are academic journals, articles, data from companies websites,
government publications and regulations, and EU directives on packaging and packaging
waste. Another important source of secondary data that is used in this research is a video
documentary compiled by a television channel in Nigeria. The video documentary
complements the other sources of data to answers the research questions.

The video documentary is titled converting waste to wealth and is centered on the practices
and management of municipal solid waste in Nigeria. Though this study is about used
beverage containers but this documentary is still relevant in studying this topic because it
focuses on the recovery of recyclable waste and beverage containers were specifically
mentioned in most instances. Despite the fact that the documentary does not specifically
focus on used beverage containers, it is still relevant for this study because a significant
number of households and consumers of beverage drinks in Nigeria handle used beverage
containers the same way they discard the non-recyclable waste. The documentary is a
compilation of interviews of different stakeholders of waste management in both Lagos and
the national level.

3.3 Comparison of Lagos and Helsinki waste management

approach

The evaluation method employed for the comparison of the two systems is drawn from the
elements of comprehensive solid waste management system outlined by Diaz et al., (2005).
Rather than using all twelve elements outlined, seven were selected for the comparison. The
two cities are compared with each other using the seven selected elements of waste
management in order to identify the practices, processes or even policies that can be learnt

41
 Research Methodology

from the Finnish system and to develop a framework that is implementable in the city of
Lagos.

The setting of policies is one of the elements of solid waste management outlined by Diaz et
al., (2005). In the Finnish society, the national laws on packaging and packaging waste
(Government decision on packaging and packaging waste 962/1997) are transposed of EU
directives on packaging and packing waste (directives 94/62/EC and 2004/12/EC) and as a
member of EU, Finland must comply with the provisions of each directive and the deadline
of achieving set goals.(Da-Cruz et al., 2012; PALPA, 2016) The ministry of environment
plays an important role in matters of waste management both in national, EU and
international level. The ministry participates in the drafting of the EU directives; they prepare
the national laws and also put mechanism in place for the implementation and monitoring of
the waste policies. (YM, 2015) Finland’s national waste plan for 2016 which was approved
back in April 2016 emphasizes on a recycling society and a set target of 50% waste recycling,
30% recovered for energy and not more than 20% landfilled by the year 2016. (Sahimaa et
al., 2015)

Whereas in Nigeria, there is no regional co-operation on waste management among West

Africa countries and every country unilaterally makes its policies. The federal ministry of
environment prepares the national environmental policies and the National environmental
Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA) which is an arm of the ministry
of environment is responsible for the monitoring and enforcement of environmental laws.
The environmental policies enacted at the federal level supersede all laws made at the state
level. In Lagos state, LAWMA is in charge of waste management while Lagos State
Environmental Protection Agency (LASEPA) is the environmental regulator. There is no
national waste strategy in Nigeria (Documentary, 2016) and most environmental regulations
do not aim at the 3R (reduce, reuse and recycle) of waste management (Abila and Kantola,
2013; Kofoworola, 2007).

Waste characterization is another important element of solid waste management that is used
as a tool of planning waste management. The waste characterization and generation in
Finland are captured and reported from time to time and this information is available for the
public. The Helsinki metropolitan area in the year 2015 generated a volume of 312,800 tons
of waste and an average of 0.3 tons per head. A total of 37% of waste are biodegradable,
plastic 16%, fiber/papers 17% while metal and glass account for 3% and 2% respectively
(HSY, 2016; HEL, 2016)

42
 Research Methodology

Data on waste generation in Lagos and Nigeria as a whole is either poorly captured by the
authority or not captured at all. According to (Oresanya, 2016) the former managing director
of LAWMA charged the federal ministry of environment on need of providing accurate data
on waste across states which can enhance waste planning and management. Some scholars
also gave estimates of waste generated in their studies such as, Aliu et al., (2014) who
estimated that Lagos generates between 3.1 million and 4 million metric tons of solid waste
yearly. While LAWMA (2016) stated Lagos generates 9,000 metric tons of waste daily at the
average of 0.5 kg per individual. Ogwueleka (2009) stress further that biodegradable waste
accounts for 60% of total waste generated in Nigeria and only 8% of waste are recovered for
reuse.

Another element of solid waste management that is considered for this comparison is the
physical handling of waste and recoverable materials. In Finland households and individuals
separate used beverage containers from other waste with the aim of returning them to
collection centers’ or to reverse vending machines to claim the deposits on each beverage
container. (PALPA, 2016) Whereas in Nigeria, a significant number of the population
dispose of used beverage containers with other unsorted municipal solid waste (Afun, 2009).
Recovery activities are usually done by agents of the informal sector who sort waste from
different waste disposal sites (Kofoworola, 2007; Abila, 2014) and some private
organizations who buy the recovered items from the waste pickers (Ogwueleka, 2009).

In addition, public information and education are important aspect of the comprehensive solid
waste management system. The situation in Finland and Helsinki are the same, the operator
of the deposit return system (PALPA) continually educate residents on the best practice of
discarding used beverage containers. Kids are not left out in the awareness program because
they are taught about waste separation both at home and in school from childhood. More so
there are mobile applications, where people living in Finland can access waste management
guide and instructions (HSY, 2016; PALPA, 2016).

The level of public awareness and education on sustainable waste management is low (Abila
and Kantola, 2013; Ezeah and Roberts, 2012). Imam et al., (2008) also emphasizes that
public awareness and attitude to waste can hinder every phase of solid waste management,
therefore continuous public awareness program is necessary for the effective management of
municipal solid waste.

43
 Research Methodology

Furthermore, the management of public sector administrative and operation units will also be
used as basis of comparison of the two cities. The operator of the Finnish deposit system,
PALPA, is a nonprofit organization that outsources virtually all its operations to stakeholders
that are involved in the collection, recycling and reusing of used beverage containers. More
so, the cooperation that exist between PALPA and stakeholders like the municipal
authorities, the ministry of environment, the Finnish custom, retail outlets and consumers
makes the reverse logistics of beverage containers achievable (PALPA, 2016).

In Lagos, the function of waste collection has been outsourced to private organizations
through the PSP program but there is no cooperation between either the packaging industry
or producers of beverage drinks and any of the governmental agencies or even the
government be it at state or federal level in developing a sustainable means of management
the post-consumer products (LAWMA, 2016; Oko and Anayo 2013).

Additionally, the marketing of recovered products to brokers or end users is one of the factors
that distinguish the Finnish operator of the deposit system, PALPA and the Lagos state waste
management authority. Recovered beverage containers in Finland are sold to the reprocessor,
who give used beverage containers a new life and the proceeds from this exchange are used
to cover the cost of recovery and the logistics of used beverage containers (PALPA, 2015).
Unfortunately, the Nigerian economy is not as organized as her Finnish counterpart and the
marketing of recovered beverage containers depends on the actors or organizations involved.
The recovery of used beverage containers is mostly done by waste pickers or scavengers and
they market recovered items directly to the recyclers or to intermediaries who sells to
recyclers. Other actors are LAWMA and private businesses that recovers recyclable items
from waste and market them to the packaging industry or the recyclers.

Establishing prices for services and incentives for recovery of used beverage containers are
issues that need to be addressed in the city of Lagos and Nigeria. There is no value ascribed
or attached to empty beverage containers in Nigeria neither are there other incentives
available for practicing recycling in Nigeria aside from the waster pickers or scavengers that
make living from used beverage containers. Unlike Nigeria, the Finnish operator of deposit
system, PALPA has a uniform price in form deposit for different category of beverage
containers. The value of the deposit are inscribe on every container’s body to serve as
incentives for consumers to return the empties after consumption. The cost of recovering
beverage empties are bore from the payment and subscription of manufacturers and brewers
to PALPA

44
 Empirical Evidence

4 Empirical Evidence
This section of the study presents the empirical findings of the survey conducted on
consumers of soft and alcoholic beverage drinks in the city of Lagos. The collation and
analysis of data was done with IBM SPSS software and descriptive statistics was employed
to structure and analyze the data of the questionnaires.

4.1 Demographic Composition

The sample population of this survey was 150 respondents and from the sample size, an
impressive response rate of 62.7% which amount to 94 respondents was gathered for data
analysis. The frequency table and cross tabulation method were employed to further analyze
and interpret the demographic data of the sample size. From the 94 valid respondents, 51.1%
were male while the remaining 48.9% were female. The margin between male and female
respondents was so close and it can be said that the two genders were well represented in the
survey as depicted in table 5.

Table 5 Sex

Cumulative
Frequency Percent Valid Percent Percent
Male 48 51,1 51,1 51,1
Female 46 48,9 48,9 100
Total 94 100 100,0

The age of the respondents was categorized into five groups, namely, the below 15 years of
age, the 15-24 age range, the 25-34 age range, the 35-54 age range and the 55 and above
years of age. From the total sample of 94 respondents the 15-24 age range account for the
highest number of participants with 47.9% and was followed by the 25-34 age range with
38.3% . The 35-54 age group constitute 9.6% of the sample population while the below 15
age group had the smallest representation in the survey with 4.6% and the 55 above age
group had no participant as shown in table 6 below.

45
 Empirical Evidence

Table 6 Age of respondents

Cumulative
Frequency Percent Valid Percent Percent
Below 15 4 4,3 4,3 4,3
15-24 45 47,9 47,9 52,1
25-34 36 38,3 38,3 90,4
35-54 9 9,6 9,6 100
Total 94 100 100

The level of education of respondents was also considered for the purpose of analyzing the
data of the survey. It is important to note that from the four education groups listed for this
survey, namely West Africa Entrance Examination Council (WAEC) which is equivalent to
high school education in Europe and other parts of the world. The polytechnic lower National
Diploma and the National Certificate Examination, university degree holders and the
postgraduate education. From the above classified groups only two groups, namely NCE/ND
and HND/BSC were represented in the survey with 39.4% and 60.6% respectively as
depicted in table 7.

Table 7 Level of education

Cumulative
Frequency Percent Valid Percent Percent

Valid NCE/ND 37 39,4 39,4 39,4

HND/BSC 57 60,6 60,6 100,0

Total 94 100,0 100,0

The occupation as shown in table 8 and 9, has 48.9% of the respondents as students, 23.4%
are self employed, civil servants constitute 18.1% of respondents while professionals have
the lowest representation with 9.6%.

46
 Empirical Evidence

Table 8 Occupation

Cumulative
Frequency Percent Valid Percent Percent

Valid Self employed 22 23,4 23,4 23,4

Civil servant 17 18,1 18,1 41,5

Professional 9 9,6 9,6 51,1

Other 46 48,9 48,9 100,0

Total 94 100,0 100,0

Table 9 Other_ occupation

Cumulative
Frequency Percent Valid Percent Percent

Valid 48 51,1 51,1 51,1

Student 46 48,9 48,9 100,0

Total 94 100,0 100,0

4.2 Data Analysis

A 5 point Likert scale which ranges from “Strongly Disagree” to “Strongly Agree” and
“Indifferent” in the middle. The scale was applied across most questions of the survey in
order to capture the opinions, attitudes and feelings of respondents to different questions for
easy analysis and reporting of data. In addition, this analysis section also employs charts,
graphs and frequencies table to interpret the data generated from the survey.

The “indifferent” option of the table was interpreted as neither agrees nor disagrees and it
was interpreted as such in the data analysis. The other four choices, namely strongly agree
and agree are interpreted as agreed while disagree and strongly disagree are interpreted as
disagreed for the purpose of analyzing the outcome of the survey.

The table 10 below depicts respondents’ opinions across a group of related questions that
tests if respondents’ actual practice effective waste management in the city of Lagos. The
implication of this is that majority of respondents, about three quarter of the sample
population understands the importance of proper waste management and yet less than half of

47
 Empirical Evidence

the respondents actually practiced waste separation from the source which is one of the
fundamental elements of sustainable waste management. In addition, there is almost an equal
split of respondents’ opinion on the current state of waste management in Lagos and what
baffles one is the fact that a quarter of respondents had no opinion on the current state of
waste management in Lagos. Despite the fact that municipal waste management is an
important topic that affects the wellbeing of the people and the society at large.

Table 10 Knowledge of sustainable waste management

Please indicate your level of agreement with the following Percentage * No of respondents
statements.
Strongly Disagree Indifferent Agree Strongly
disagree agree

I am satisfied with the state of waste management in the 14.9% 21.3% 24.5% 33.0% 6.4%
city of Lagos.
Proper disposal of waste will improve the current state of 10.6% 3.2% 8.5% 47.9% 29.8%
waste management in Lagos.
My household waste is separated into recyclable and 26.6% 17.0% 19.1% 30.9% 6.4%
biodegradable before the final disposal.
It is appropriate to dump household waste on dumpsite, 58.5% 14.9% 7.4% 12.8% 6.4%
road side or in drainage.

In table 11 three set of questions were tested to determine if respondents actually understand
that as individuals and households they also have a role to play in the management of waste
in their respective communities. Interestingly majority of the respondents (77.7%) agrees that
waste management is everybody’s responsibility. This response reflects the position of Imam
et al., (2008) which states that environmental quality is a function of collective responsibility
which does not exclude individuals. However in another instance more than half of the
respondents still think that waste management is the exclusive duty of government. This
response shows that the level of awareness of the populace on sustainable waste management
practice is still low. Further, Gonzalez-Torre and Adenso-Diaz, (2006) lay emphasis on the
importance of communication with the consumers because they are the first link of the
reverse supply chain. The communication could be from the government, packaging industry
or the producers of beverage drinks to enlighten the consumers on the goals and waste
management guidelines. However the absence of effective communication mechanism will
jeopardize the waste management plan.

48
 Empirical Evidence

Table 11 Taking ownership of waste management

Please indicate your level of agreement with the following Percentage * No of respondents
statements.
Strongly Disagree Indifferent Agree Strongly
disagree agree

Waste management is everybody’s responsibility. 7.4% 7.4% 7.4% 33.0% 44.7%

Waste management is the sole responsibility of 9.6% 20.2% 11.7% 30.9% 27.7%
governments at all level.
Waste management is the sole responsibility of producers. 8.5% 30.9% 13.8% 33.0% 13.8%

Table 12 illustrates the level of awareness of the respondents on sustainable waste

management practice. A half of the respondents agree that they are aware of government
directives on waste management and particularly the ones on used beverage containers. In
reality, majority of the populace in Lagos handle empties of beverages as any other waste and
government policies are not focused on the 3R of sustainable waste management
(Kofoworola, 2007; Osinbanjo, 2016). Besides, the private sector actively promotes the
culture of material reuse and recycling through the recovery of beverage empties.
Additionally, a total of 53.2% of respondents think otherwise on the practice of extended
producer responsibility by beverage drinks producers and packaging industry. These
responses are corroborated by the position of Abila and Kantola (2013); Oko and Anayo
(2013) which states that the commitment of packaging and product producers in reverse
logistics and the reuse of discarded aluminum cans and PET bottles are really low and the
level of awareness of Nigerians on sustainable waste management is poor. Though producers
of beverage containers have an ongoing campaign that promotes recycling of containers
inscribed on both aluminum cans and PET bottle despite that do not have reverse logistics
program to collect used beverage containers (Oko and Anayo, 2013).

Table 12 Awareness of measures to discourage inappropriate disposal of beverage empties

Please indicate your level of agreement with the following Percentage * No of respondents
statements.
Strongly Disagree Indifferent Agree Strongly
disagree agree

I am aware of government directives on waste management 12.8% 20.2% 17.0% 35.1% 14.9%
particularly the ones on empty beverage containers.
Producers, particularly beverage drinks and packaging 25.5% 27.7% 24.5% 10.6% 11.7%
producers are making efforts to encourage consumers to
return used beverage containers.

49
 Empirical Evidence

One of the important issues that were tested in the survey is the manner in which the
respondents discard empties of beverage drinks after consumption. The question was put
across to respondents in two different ways as shown in both figure 8 and 9 below. In figure 8
respondents were asked to indicate the method they use in disposing empties of beverage
drinks consumed while on the road or in the traffic. Interestingly, 53% of respondents look
around for available waste bin to discard used containers. While 37% of respondents
inappropriately discard used beverage containers manner and the remaining 10% keep a
collection of empty containers possibly for reuse or recycling.

How beverages consumed in traffic are discarded

Take Road
home 9%
10%

Public bus
28%
Waste bin
53%

Figure 8 How beverages consumed in traffic are discarded

The survey as shown in figure 9 also seeks to know if the respondents actually practice
sustainable disposal in their respective household and the overall response was not surprising.
A total of 62% of respondents patronize state licensed PSP operators, 10% of respondents
dispose used beverage containers indiscriminately, while 21% patronize agents of informal
sector. The remaining 7% of respondents do return used beverage containers to waste buyers
who act as intermediary between households and recyclers.

In both figures 7 and 8, in as much as the end consumers do not discard used beverage
containers indiscriminately, there is still likelihood that a significant amount of the empties
will be recovered by waste pickers, house to house waste buyers or through the LAWMA
buyback program. In the case of the containers that were not disposed of appropriately, there
are little chances of their recovery and reintegration to the system. According to the author’s
observations in appendix d, the containers that were discarded in public space are still where
they were dumped constituting waste of resources and a nuisance to the environment.

50
 Empirical Evidence

Used beverage containers disposal

Recycle
Litter 7%
Cart
10%
pushers
21%

PSP
62%

Figure 9 Used beverage containers disposal

Furthermore, respondents were asked to rate their performance on household waste

management in figure 10. The results was not too surprising considering the position of Oko
and Anayo, (2013); appendix d, on how beverage empties have defaced the streets of Lagos
and other cities in Nigeria. A total of 12% of respondents rated themselves as very high, 47%
high, 23% were indifferent while the remaining 14% rated themselves low.

Individual performance level

Very low
4%

Very high Low

12% 14%

Indifferent
23%
High
47%

Figure 10 Individualperformance level

51
 Empirical Evidence

A cross tabulation technique was employed to analyze the relationship between the different
age range and the frequency of consumption of beverage drinks in aluminum cans and PET
bottles. As illustrated in figure 11, a total number of 41 (43.6%) out of the 94 respondents
consume drinks in beverage containers at least once every day and the age group 15 - 24
constitutes 44% (18) of the group. Likewise, age group 15- 24 which accounts for 54% (21)
of the 39 respondents that consumes a bottle or can of drink at least once weekly. In the two
instances the age group 25 – 34 was the second highest consumers of beverages drinks with
15 and 16 respondents respectively. A total of 12 (12.7%) respondents indicated that they do
take beverages packaged in aluminum cans or PET bottles at least once a month while just 2
(2.1%) respondents do not take beverage drinks in PET and cans. The significance of this
chart is to illustrate that there is a huge market for packaged beverage drinks in the city of
Lagos and that their residues can be put into productive use.

25

20

15
Below 15
10
15 - 24
25 - 34
5
35 - 54

0
At least At least At least I do not
once day once weely once take
monthly

Figure 11 Cross tabulation of age and frequency of consumption

The statements in table 13 consider the role and attitude of consumers toward the reverse
logistics of beverage containers. The first statement shows that only 28.8% of the respondents
are aware of the collection points where beverage empties can be returned in Lagos. This
response clearly shows the inefficiencies of the waste management authority in addressing
the indiscriminate disposal of used beverage containers in the city of Lagos. The low
awareness of the populace is quite surprising considering the waste management reforms that
were implemented by Lagos state government and the establishment of recycling facilities,
the buyback program and the recycling banks in eight strategic locations within the state

52
 Empirical Evidence

(Ezeah and Roberts, 2014). Government needs to do more to sensitize the people about the
availability of these facilities. Moreover, the successful implementation of waste policies
including recycling programs depends on the identification of collection point (Kofoworala,
2007) and the continuous publicity to educate households and consumers on waste
management guidelines (Martin et al., 2006; Ezeah and Roberts, 2012).

Cheng and Chiou-nan (2013) state that average human being is either extrinsically or
intrinsically motivated to recycle empties of beverage container. The survey reveals that less
than half of the respondents are either intrinsically or extrinsically motivated to keep and
return the empties of beverage containers to the producers, the recyclers or whoever the case
may be. While more than a third of respondents are not motivated at all to return empties of
beverages they consume. The concern of these set of questions is that as much as 27.7% of
respondents are undecided on whether to participate in recycling or not. It is understandable
that some people will still not participate in the recycling process of beverage containers even
with good incentives in place. However the number of undecided respondents is a wakeup
call for the appropriate authority. It is not enough for government to establish recycling
villages or banks without involving the consumers in the process. The consumers are the first
link of the reverse supply chain, therefore constant communication and continuous education
of consumers on what is expected of them is paramount to the success of the reverse supply
chain of beverage containers.

Moreover, more than half of the respondents (55.3%) agree that the extension of the reverse
logistics of refillable glass bottles to other beverage containers, such as PET bottles and
aluminum cans, will ensure smooth return of empties. A total of 29.8% thinks otherwise
while about 15% of respondents do not have opinions on the statement.

Table 13 Handling of used beverage containers in eco-friendly manner

Please indicate your level of agreement with the following Percentage * No of respondents
statements.
Strongly Disagree Indifferent Agree Strongly
disagree agree

I am aware of the designated centres and agencies where 31.9% 23.4% 16.0% 16.0% 12.8%
one can return empty beverage containers.
I am motivated to collect and return my used beverage 16.0% 18.1% 27.7% 28.7% 9.6%
containers to the producers or recyclers.
I would return empty plastic bottles and aluminum cans for 13.8% 22.3% 21.3% 29.8% 12.8%
a token of 10% of the price of the drink.
The extension of the circular economy system of glass 11.7% 18.1% 14.9% 34.0% 21.3%
bottles to plastic and aluminum cans will facilitate smooth
return of containers to producers.

53
 Empirical Evidence

The survey also inquired from respondents the most preferable place they would like to
return their used beverage containers. Five different options, namely, retailers, local
supermarket, distributors, recycling and local government offices were presented before the
respondents and the outcome is as follows. As shown in figure 12, recycling centre returns
accounted for 30% of respondents’ choice and is closely followed by a return to the nearest
local government secretariat with 28%. Retail stores accounts for 17% while supermarket
(groceries stores) was 16% and distributors return was the least favored option with 9% of
respondents.

Collection point

Local
Retailers
supermarket
17%
16%

Distributors
9% Local
government
28%
Recycling
centre
30%

Figure 12 Collection point

54
 Discussion

5 Discussion
This section of the study recaps the data analysis section and also reflects on the framework
of the study in answering some of the research questions raised in the first chapter.

5.1 Result Discussion

The reverse supply chain begins from the consumers and ends with the producers or recyclers
that reprocess and reuse empties of beverage drinks (Gonzalez-Torre et al., 2004). The
success of reverse logistics or recycling in any society greatly depends on the attitude of the
end users whom also double as suppliers of secondary raw materials, to separate recyclable
residues from household waste (Gonzalez-Torre and Adenso-Diaz, 2002).

In the case of Lagos state, as shown in table 10, an overwhelming 77.7% of respondents
agreed that proper waste management will improve waste management in the city of Lagos
and yet only 37.3% of respondents actually practice waste separation. Waste separation from
the source is the responsibility of households and individuals, and is an essential element of
municipal solid waste management. The absence of it makes the management of municipal
solid waste more cumbersome and expensive to recover recyclable materials. The pictures in
appendix D depict some of the environmental problems of a society that lacks waste
separation policy.

It is also important to note that recycling in developing countries is usually done by agents of
the informal sector (Stutz, 2008) and Lagos is not an exception. Though there are some
entrepreneurs in the city of Lagos who incentivize households to separate and keep a
collection of used beverage containers which they buy and later resell to manufacturers and
recyclers (Miller, 2014). In contrast to developed countries like Finland, the law stipulates
that producers of beverage containers and other producers are responsible for the post-
consumer phase of their products. Consequently, this directive has led to the establishment of
a deposit return system, PALPA, by a consortium of beverage drink producers and retail
businesses that acts on their behalf in fulfilling the obligations imposed on them by law.

Furthermore, the survey conducted in Lagos shows that drinks in beverage containers have so
far received high patronage from Nigerians especially residents of Lagos and a high number
of empties are being generated on daily and weekly basis. A significant number of the
beverage empties are discarded inappropriately, as illustrated in figure 11 and 8, and table 10
of this study. In contrast, Helsinki and Finland are not challenged with the issues of

55
 Discussion

indiscriminate disposal of used beverage containers and consumers are adequately

incentivized to return used containers through the mandatory deposits on containers.
According to PALPA (2016) Finland is second to none in the recycling of used beverage
containers in the world and an estimate of two billion beverage containers is recycled yearly.

Abila and Kantola (2013) states that inappropriate disposal of waste is a common
phenomenon in most urban cities of Nigeria. The result of the survey has clearly shown that
before consumers in the city of Lagos can fully assume their new role in the reverse supply
chain of beverage containers, government and other stakeholders do have a role to play in
inducing the consumers to practice sustainable waste management. Consumers’ role in a
circular economy is very important; they are the suppliers of secondary materials that
substitute the usage of virgin raw materials in the production of new products. The
willingness of consumers to return used beverage containers and their participation in the
backward flow of used products is crucial to the implementation of reverse logistics
programs.

In many developed nations consumers of beverage drinks have gone past the issues of waste
separation and indiscriminate disposal. They have moved on to a level whereby they utilize
their collective power to exert pressure on producers to show more commitment to the
environmental aspect of their business. However, consumers in most developing nations are
yet to realize the power they possess to hold producers and even government accountable for
the externalities of their operations.

In a nutshell, the role of consumers in the reverse logistics of beverage containers is more of
a partnership relationship than a mere end user of the final product of the supply chain. Waste
separation from the source is very crucial to the successful implementation of recycling
programs and this is a responsibility designated to the consumers who are the links between
the traditional forward supply chain and the reverse logistics. Furthermore, the involvement
of consumers in the reverse logistics of beverage containers will not only help companies to
save cost, it also improves the collection problem of UBC by bridging the gap between
consumption/ disposal of UBC and their reintegration as secondary materials into supply
chains.

Furthermore, the challenges of managing the post-consumer phase of used beverage

containers are not peculiar to Lagos or developing nations alone. Rather it is a phase that
many developed countries have gone through and they have been able to develop a

56
 Discussion

sustainable means of tackling the problems with the combination of right policies and right
attitudes. In the preliminary analysis it was established how the city of Oregon in USA,
Germany and other European Union countries adopted national policies on sustainable waste
management and the principle of extended producer responsibility to reposition their nations
to a top performing nation in sustainable waste management. As a matter of fact government
policies and legislations have prompted many organizations to practice reverse logistics
because they do not want to be caught in the web of compliance issues (Thienen et al., 2014;
Abdullah et al., 2014; Dowlatshahi, 2000). According to Sakai et al., (2011) the 3R of
sustainable waste management and waste management policies are the basis of developing a
material cycle’s society.

Government legislations on environmental management do have significant impact on every

phase of municipal waste management and when there is no continuity in policies or when
legislations are not revisited from time to time to reflect the current needs of the society, then
such policies cannot address the needs of a modern society. Osibanjo, (2016) asserts that lack
of government policies to compel both producers of commodity to use recycled products and
the buyers to patronize recycled product is stalling the waste to wealth campaign in Nigeria.
In addition, the absence of environmental policies such as extended producer responsibility
and the polluters pay principle in Nigeria has contributed to the neglect of the environment by
many producers in Nigeria, especially in the packaging industry and beverage drinks
producers who do not feel responsible for the post-consumer phase of their products.

The situation is quite different from Finland’s waste management practice, where legislation
is a key factor in the management of municipal solid waste. The Finnish national waste plan
was drawn from the EU 2008/98/EC and 94/62/EC, which prescribe the 3R i.e. reduction of
packaging waste by using recyclable lightweight materials, the using of reusable packaging
rather than disposable materials, and the recycling of empty containers rather than their
outright disposal. More so, same legislation stipulates stringent conditions for organizations
that do not take back the empties of their products such as imposition of environmental tax
and excise duties for uncollected containers.

Therefore, the role of legislations in the management of municipal waste cannot be

overemphasized, and just as legislation can be used as catalyst for the adoption of reverse
logistics, it can also be used to coordinate or to influence consumers’ behavior in a particular
pattern that suits the waste management plan. Handfield et al., (2005) asserts that
environmental friendly supply chains require the participation of government through the

57
 Discussion

enactment of regulations that compel both the producers and the consumers to embrace
sustainable practices.

In answering the research question on how government policies has affected the reverse
logistics decision of soft and alcoholic drink producers in Lagos. Government policies has
had little or no impact on organizations’ reverse logistics decisions due to the fact that most
legislations are not based on the 3R of sustainable waste management and as such cannot
address the present day challenges of municipal solid waste management. The personal
observation as documented in appendix D and the opinion of Osinbanjo, 2016 in appendix A
illustrate the inefficiencies that exist in the system and also speak volume on the
ineffectiveness of government policies on beverage drinks producers and the packaging
industry.

Finally, government campaigns and organizations’ public awareness program in promoting

the reverse logistics of beverage containers has been so poor and ineffective considering the
evidences available in this study. Tables 12 and 13 clearly show the absence of effective
communication in the supply chain of beverage containers in the city of Lagos. Table 13 also
depicts that a significant number of respondents are not motivated to participate in the
recycling of used beverage containers and in addition to that, just 29% of respondents
acknowledged that they are aware of the designated collection points for UBC.

The beverage containers in the Nigerian market also have a recycling campaign inscribed on
the containers as their Finnish counterpart does but there is no information available to
consumers in Nigeria on where, how and why beverage containers should be returned for
recycling. Consumers of beverage drinks are not carried along on the waste management
reform that was embarked on by the government of Lagos state in 2011. Some aspect of the
reform that affects the supply chain of beverage containers like the establishment of recycling
banks, recycling villages and the waste buyback centres are initiatives to promote a recycling
society. However, the inability of government to involve the consumers through public
awareness programs and the introduction of reasonable incentives for recycling has stalled
the progress of reverse logistics in the city of Lagos.

58
 Conclusion and Recommendation

6 Conclusion and Recommendation

This chapter of the study presents the conclusion, limitations of study, the recommendations
and a summary of the work. It also confirms whether the research questions and the
objectives to the study have been answered.

6.1 Conclusion

The aim of the study was to investigate the disconnection between the point of
consumption/disposal of beverage containers and the point where they are recovered, reused
and reintegrated into supply chains in the city of Lagos. In order to address this problem a
theoretical framework was developed based on the best practices of top performing nations in
recycling of beverage containers. Importantly, four research questions were also formulated
to critically look at the phenomenon of the study.

Research question 1 has been properly addressed in the second chapter of this study using
selected articles and academic journals. Reverse logistics in the context of this study means
the recycling or reusing of used beverage containers in a closed or open loop supply chain.
The implication of this definition is that even the activities of agents of the informal sector
that are popularly known as scavengers or waste pickers and waste buyers that liaise between
the consumers and recyclers can be considered as reverse logistics. The diagram depicting the
supply chain of beverage containers in figure 3, illustrates how the activities of agents of the
informal sector and waste buyers amount to reverse logistics.

The second research question also has been dealt with in chapters 2 and 5 using evidences
drawn from selected academic journals, waste management policies and data from the
survey. In a circular economy the consumers are integral part of the supply chain, they are the
first link and the material supplier of the reverse supply chain. Thus, the involvement of
consumers in the reverse logistics of beverage containers particularly through separation of
households waste is very crucial to it success.

In the third research question it was established that there is correlation between legislation
and the adoption of reverse logistics in the context of used beverage containers. Chapters 2, 3
and 5 present an elaborate analysis of the connection between the two. There is no doubt that
environmental legislations such as the extended producer responsibility, EU directives
94/62/EC and German packaging ordinance have revolutionized the packaging industry
through the introduction of measures that compel producers to recovery, reuse and cycle

59
 Conclusion and Recommendation

materials. However, in the case of Lagos and Nigeria, most environmental policies in Nigeria
are obsolete and are not revisited from time to time to tackle the present day challenges of
waste management. And as such government legislations has had little or no impact on the
reverse logistics decision of beverages and packaging industries in Lagos, Nigeria.

The forth research question has also been addressed in chapters 3, 4 and 5 using evidences
gathered from the survey, personal observation and selected journals. There is no evidence
that either government campaigns or beverage producers’ public awareness program on
sustainable waste management has promoted reverse logistics of beverage containers in the
Nigerian Market.

The reverse logistics of beverage containers is still practiced on a very small scale in the city
of Lagos. Packaging materials are being wasted on daily basis due to the indifferent attitudes
of the packaging industry and beverage drink producers to the post-consumer phase of their
products. Unlike Finland and some other developed nations where the circular economy of
beverage containers is the norm and consumers are seen as integral part of the supply chain.
The Nigerian society still perceived the consumers as mere end users of beverage products
and even government intervention in the supply chains of producers particularly the
packaging industry is almost a non-existence.

Nevertheless, irrespective of the methods adopted by consumers in discarding used beverage

containers, there are chances that some of these containers would be recovered and
reintegrated into other supply chains by agents of the informal sector and private
organizations who also perform recycling activities.

6.2 Limitations

In the course of this study there were some constraints that actually limited the depth of this
work. One of the limitations is the sample size of the survey conducted in Lagos. The city of
Lagos has an inhabitants of about 17 million people spread across the land mass of the state
and from the initial sample of 150 picked for the survey, 94 respondents completed and
returned their questionnaires. The sample size of this study is only 94 respondents and the
outcome of the survey was used to generalize the opinions of 17 million residences of Lagos
state.

In addition, only few researches have been done on reverse logistics and the supply chain of
beverage containers in Nigeria. Therefore it limits the access to information on the practice of

60
 Conclusion and Recommendation

reverse logistics in Nigeria. Moreover, a significant number of households in Lagos and other
states in Nigeria handles recyclable waste such as beverage containers the same manner they
discard other households waste like biodegradable waste.

6.3 Recommendation
6.3.1 Further Research
There are only few studies that have been done on reverse logistics and the activities of the
agents of informal sector who actually perform recycling activities in Nigeria. Therefore,
there is need for a comprehensive study on reverse logistics and the supply chain of beverage
containers in developing countries. In addition to that the role of the agents of the informal
sector in the reverse logistics of beverage containers would be an interesting topic to
research.

6.3.2 Recommendation for Lagos State and the Government of Nigeria

It was mentioned in the introductory chapter of this study, that recommendations will be
made on the development of a reverse logistics model for beverage containers and effective
waste management system in the city of Lagos and Nigeria as a whole. The recommendations
are based on the insights and lessons learned in the course of this study particularly from the
Finnish waste management system

The framework adopted for this study is also proposed for the management of waste and the
reverse logistics of used beverage containers in Lagos, Nigeria. However, before the
framework can be implementable there have to be some reforms in the current waste
management systems and the buck of it stops with the regulatory authority that enact waste
and environmental laws. As it is now waste legislations in Nigeria are ineffective (Abila and
Kantola 2013) and therefore a national strategy on waste management is long overdue to
address the current challenges of waste management Nigeria (Oresanya 2016).

Furthermore, a packaging and packaging waste legislation should be enacted to take care of
empty beverage containers and water sachets that are littering public places in Lagos. The
reverse logistics hierarchy should be the core of the packaging waste legislation. And the first
option of handling packaging waste must be the reduction of packaging materials by
producers and the substitution of heavy weight and hazardous materials with light weight
packaging materials. The encouragement of producers to patronize and to use reusable
packaging material should be the second option of minimizing packaging waste. More so,

61
 Conclusion and Recommendation

refillable and returnable beverage containers should be introduced to the Nigerian market and
there should be a plan to gradually phase out disposable and non-returnable beverage
containers. The third and the last option of minimizing packaging waste is the recycling of
used beverage containers both the returnable and non-returnable bottles.

Further, recycling activities in Lagos and other cities in Nigeria are usually performed by
agents of the informal sectors and some private investors. While the packaging industry and
producers of beverage drinks are less involved in addressing the post-consumer phase of their
products. The concept of Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) should be introduced in
Nigeria through legislations that compel the packaging industry, the producer and importers
of beverage drinks to be accountable for the post-consumer phase of their products. The
enactment of laws is not sufficient to address the issues of used beverage containers in Lagos,
a mechanism should also be put in place to monitor and report the quantities of beverage
containers produced and the recovery rate of all beverage containers types at a given time.

More so, the collection of recyclable materials from dumpster is solely done by scavengers or
waste collectors in Lagos and other Nigerian cities. There is need for the government of
Lagos state to as a matter of fact harness the efforts of the informal sector by including them
in the waste plan of the state and mechanize their work for greater efficiencies

The implementation of environmental policies is a major problem among developing

countries and even the existence of sound environmental policies are not sufficient without
the political will to fully implement the policies. The governance structure in both federal and
state level that are in charge of monitoring and maintaining environmental wellbeing should
be strengthened to effectively carry out their functions. The federal ministry of environment,
The National Environmental Standards and Regulation Enforcement Agency (NESREA),
Lagos State Environmental Protection Agency (LASEPA) and Lagos State Waste
Management Agency (LAWMA) should be empowered to enforce compliance, conduct
lifecycle assessment, and to sanction organizations that default on any of the environmental
policies. In addition, the government institutions performing these duties should be well
funded and the training and retraining of employees should be done on a regular basis.

The most challenging aspect of the supply chain of beverage containers is the collection
phase and before any progress can be achieved there must be an organized approach to the
retrieval of used containers from consumers. Besides the enforcement of EPR policy on
organizations, a mandatory environmental tax that is similar to the Finnish tax on beverage

62
 Conclusion and Recommendation

containers which was highlighted in paragraph 2.2.3.2 of this study should be levied on
producers of beverage containers and beverage drinks producers. The tax will be based on the
quantities of beverage containers produced and the unit of beverage drinks sold to consumers.
The tax will serve as the cost of business externalities on the environment and a producer that
ignores its EPR will have to pay more environmental taxes than those that practice it.

The government of Lagos state should make its recycling plan more comprehensive by
encouraging producers of beverage containers and beverage drinks to establish a Producer
Responsibility Organization (PRO) to act as intermediary between producers of containers
and the consumers. The primary purpose of the PRO will be to oversee the collection of
empty containers from consumers who have taken a new role of raw material suppliers. The
fact that consumers are the first link of the reverse supply chain makes it important for
government, the packaging industry and the producers of beverage drinks to keep an open
communication with them in order to achieve a good working relationship with them.

In addition, consumers of beverage drinks should also be carried along in the process of
curbing resource wastage through public awareness and education program. Hence, waste
management guidelines should be taught in schools, through mobile applications and internet,
and even in churches and mosques. Also quality time should be devoted on radio and
television announcements on what is expected of consumers as regards empties of beverage
containers.

There are eight recycling banks in the whole of Lagos state where consumers can return used
beverage containers. For a state of about 17 million inhabitants to have only eight recycling
banks, is just as good as not having at all. It is recommended that more recycling banks
should be set up within the state and more people should be trained and employed to
supervise the collection of used beverage containers in the facilities. The basis for expansion
should be one recycling bank per 400 people which means additional 42,500 recycling banks
should be established in Lagos metropolis. In addition, considering the fact that Nigeria is
still lacking in some infrastructures and amenities, a total automation of the collection of used
beverage containers such as the use of reverse vending machines is not feasible right now
because of the logistics involved. However, a pilot project of automated collection of used
beverage containers can be conducted with the initial eight recycling banks to ascertain the
gains and benefits of using reverse vending machine before the investment is made.

63
 Conclusion and Recommendation

Furthermore, a modern model of the deposit system similar to the model of glass bottles
should be adopted for aluminum cans and PET bottles in Nigeria. The deposit system of glass
bottles has been a success in the Nigerian Market and it has also shown that consumers of
beverage drinks react positively to financial incentives as explained in section 2.5, which is a
positive indication of consumers’ acceptance of deposits on aluminum cans and PET bottles.

In addition to that, the federal ministry of environment and their states counterparts together
with NESREA and other stakeholders such as the packaging industry, producers and importer
of beverage drinks, and consumer right protection agency should decide on the ideal deposit
that would be on different types and sizes of packaging materials. Furthermore, they should
work out modalities for the collection of beverage containers, how the deposits will be
charged and the refunding of deposits. It is also important for government to enact laws that
clarifies the role of every stakeholder in the management of the deposit system and there
should be sanctions for any stakeholder that does not fulfill its obligations towards the
effective management of the deposit system.

There are many benefits attached to the adoption of sustainable supply chain for beverage
containers and every stakeholder stands to benefit quite a lot from its implementation. The
reverse logistics of beverage containers will curb the indiscriminate disposal of beverage
empties and instead channel them to recycling facilities where they are recovered and
reintegrated into different supply chains. The metropolis of Lagos will not only be clean and
free from waste containers with the practice of reverse logistics. It will also preserve natural
resources and keep the city of Lagos and Nigeria on the path of sustainable development.

The government of Lagos state and the municipal authorities will also benefit from the
implementation of reverse logistics through the reduction in the cost of managing municipal
solid waste. More funds would also be accessible to government to tackle waste collection
problems such as free riding containers, through the environmental taxes levied on the
producers of beverage containers.

Furthermore, the producers of beverage containers and fillers of beverage drinks also stand to
benefit from the implementation of reverse logistics in the area of waste minimization and
reduction in the cost of sourcing raw materials. Rather than frequently importing from other
nations or extracting virgin raw materials from nature to produce new beverage containers,
the waste generated in the post-consumer phase are converted into secondary raw materials
and prepared for reuse in the production phase of the supply chain. The adoption of extended

64
 Conclusion and Recommendation

producer responsibility policy in Nigeria’s packaging industry will prompt producers to

design eco-friendly containers with high reusability and recyclability which will make their
work much easy.

Finally, the implementation of the above recommendations would resuscitate the dying
recycling industry in Nigeria by continuously keeping them at work through the constant
supply of beverage empties by organized PROs of both packaging producers and beverage
producers. In addition, more jobs would be created in the recycling industry and waste
recovery agencies. And households and individual will be more enlightened and motivated to
separate waste from source and to return empty containers to collection centers in return for
the deposits on every container they returned.

6.4 Summary

The reverse logistics of beverage containers entails collaborative efforts of all stakeholders
and supply chain actors and any society lacking supply chain cooperation will give room for
inefficiencies in the system. It is the responsibility of government to develop a road map to
sustainable waste management and communicates it vision and direction to all stakeholders.
Government also participates in the supply chain of producers by legislating environmental
sustainability laws with clearly defined goals such as the implementation of the hierarchy of
reverse logistics or the 3R (reduce, reuse and recycle) that was adopted and discussed in the
literature review section. Besides the enactment of legislations and compliance enforcement
government also educate stakeholders and play supervisory role through different agencies of
government.

In Finland and other advanced economies, the packaging industry and producers of beverage
drinks are obligated to take back the post-consumer materials of the products they placed in
the market. This responsibility has necessitated the establishment of Producer Responsibility
organizations (PRO) and the introduction of eco-friendly beverage containers that can be
easily reused or recycled repeatedly. The efficiency of the waste management authorities or
PRO’s in discharging their duties greatly depends on the willingness of households or
consumers to separate their waste in accordance with the waste management guidelines and
to return the empties of beverage containers to collection centers. The recycling process starts
with the consumers of beverage drinks who now play a dual role of end user and a material
supplier in the modern day supply chain of beverage containers.

65
 Conclusion and Recommendation

In conclusion, government can enact laws on several issues bothering the society but one
aspect of the society that legislation cannot fix is attitude. Government cannot legislate on
attitude and that is the reason some cities in developing countries including Lagos are
defaced with empties of beverage containers.

It is not sufficient for government to enact and enforce laws on sustainable waste
management or to compel producers of beverage containers to take back the post-consumer
materials of their product. Consumers’ involvement and their attitudes towards waste should
also be of prime importance to government and other stakeholders of the supply chain. And
through public awareness and continuous education of consumers on what is expected of
them and what they stand to gain by practicing sustainable waste management. It is then that
consumers will have a rethink of their actions and also help them to develop the right
attitudes. Lastly, sustainable waste management policies and the display of the right attitude
by stakeholders of the supply chain will not only address the waste collection problem in the
city of Lagos. It will also bridge the gap between the point of consumption/disposal and the
reintegration of UBC into production lines.

66
 References

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Act on Excise Duty on Certain Beverage Packages

EU Directive (2008/98/EC)

EU Directive (1994/62/EC)

EU Directive (2004/12/EC)

Finnish Government Decision on Packaging and Packaging Waste (962/2012)

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German Packaging Ordinance

75
 Appendix A: Interviews Extract

Appendix A: Interviews Extract

Mr. Ola Oresanya, a former Managing Director of Lagos State Waste
Management Agency (LAWMA).

“Waste is a descriptive word used to qualify a discarded resource from a

particular position within a time frame. Any material that you are discarding
from point A to B can be regarded by you as a waste. It must move from point
A to point B and that point B is where you can add value to the waste. So if
waste was discarded at point A and it is not evacuated to point B, then it
becomes a nuisance and will start restricting you. It will constrict your own
flow and could be in a form of epidemic.”

Mr. Adebola Shabi. General Manager, Lagos State Environmental Protection

Agency (LASEPA)

He complained about the attitudes of some residents of Lagos state towards

waste management in the state. He also said the indiscriminate disposal of
waste in the city and the refusal of some people to use the services of
government accredited waste collectors are making their work much more
difficult.

Paul O’Callaghan. Chief Executive Officer, West Africa energy

He shed light on the relationship that exists between West Africa energy and
Lagos state waste management agency and how it connects to their business
model. He further stated that their operation covers Apapa and badagry area of
the state all the way to the border with Ogun state. The partnership between
LAWMA and the West Africa energy makes it possible for Private Sector
Participation (PSP) operators to directly discharge as much as 125 metric
tonnes of households waste in their facility daily rather than disposing the
collected waste on landfills where they may not be put into use again. The
dumped household waste are further sorted into different fractions of
recyclable materials such as PET, pure water sachets and metals before they
are sold to buyers in the packaging industry.

76
 Appendix A: Interviews Extract

Lolade Oresanwo. Chief Operating Officer, West Africa energy

She corroborated the position of the CEO of West Africa energy by going a bit
further to explain how the waste delivered in their facility by PSP operators is
treated. She explained that waste first goes through the conveyor belt after
they are discharged by PSP operators, after which the waste is manually sorted
into recyclable and non-recyclable materials by the picking line employees.
The recyclable materials are sorted into fractions like papers, aluminum cans
and plastics papers before they are compressed in the batching plants for users
in the recycling industry.

Mr. Ola Oresanya, former Managing Director of Lagos State Waste

Management Agency (LAWMA).

The former chairman of LAWMA talked about the importance of national

policy on waste management and how the absence of it is causing setbacks to
the progress of sustainable waste management and conversion into resource.
Moreover, he stressed that there is the political will on the part of many
stakeholders across Nigeria to find a lasting solution to the issue of poor waste
management but the lack of national direction and strategy on waste
management is rendering them helpless.

Further, he emphasized that the national government through the Federal

ministry of environment should live up to their responsibility by providing
accurate data that will aid the planning and efficient waste management across
the states. Government should also see it as a point of duty to provide
technical assistance to states and also set targets for waste management and
conversion on a state by state basis.

Professor Oladele Osibanjo. President waste management society of Nigeria.

The professor stated that the waste sector in Nigeria is a billion dollar industry
that is still left untapped. He identified the absence of government policies
such as the one that compels producers to use recycled products and for buyers
to patronize recycled products as the reason why many still perceive waste as
waste. Further, he called on all government agencies in charge of waste
management and environmental well-being to live up to expectations by
enacting laws that will encourage foreign investors to invest in Nigeria’s
77
 Appendix B: Questionnaire

environmental sector. .

Appendix B: Questionnaire

78
 Appendix B: Questionnaire

Questionnaire table

Questions Literature
references

1 I am satisfied with the state of waste Waste management in most developing

management in the city of Lagos. countries is in a state of crisis and the
catalyst for this problem is population
growth, underfunding and lack of will to
enforce waste regulations. (Ezeah and
Roberts, 2014)

2 Proper disposal of waste will An estimate of 30 - 60% of urban solid waste

improve the current state of waste in developing is uncollected and as a result of
management in Lagos. this neglect, the affected people resort to
indiscriminate disposal of waste. (Stutz,
2008; Ogwueleka, 2009)
3 Government’s investment in The once dilapidated and ineffective waste
environmental sector will improve management authority in the Lagos was
municipal solid waste management. resuscitated with the help of investors from
within and outside the country. (Ezeah and
Roberts, 2014)
4 The recycling and reusing of disposal The reuse, recycle or re-consuming of
materials will improve waste packaging waste might reduce many poor
management in the society. waste management problems. (Livingstone
and Spark, 1994)

5 The reduction of packaging waste Producers can contribute to environmental

through eco-friendly design of sustainability by doing away with excessive
product package will improve product packaging which are not economical
management in the society. and do nature no good. (Livingstone and
Spark, 2014)

6 Waste management is everybody’s Environmental quality is a function of

responsibility. collective responsibility which does not
exclude individuals. (Imam et al., 2008)
7 Waste management is the sole
responsibility of governments at all
8 level.
Waste management is the sole
responsibility of producers.

9 My household waste is separated into Consumers are the link between the
recyclable and biodegradable before traditional forward logistics and reverse
the final disposal. logistics, and the culture of waste separation
by consumers is essential for operating a
circular economy of materials. (Gonzalez-
Torre and Adenso-Diaz, 2002)
The success of recycling depends on the
separation of waste from household level
(Sridhar and Hammed, 2014)
10 It is appropriate to dump household Waste is commonly disposed in an
waste on dumpsite, road side or environmental unfriendly manner in most
drainage. developing countries even with the existence
of waste collection systems. (Ogwueleka,
2009)

79
 Appendix B: Questionnaire

11 How do you dispose used beverage Kofoworola (2007) opined that residents of
containers at home? Lagos dispose their refuse wherever suits
12 them because there was no defined waste
How often do you consume products
collection points in the state.
in disposable containers?
13 Ezeah et al., (2013) estimated that about 30-
How would you rate individual
70% of refuse generated in cities of
performance on household waste
14 developing countries are collected while the
management and disposal?
other 70-30% are disposed in road sides,
How do you dispose of empty PET lagoons and open spaces.
bottles or aluminum cans of the
drinks you bought and consumed in
the traffic?

15 Government’s waste management Solid waste management policy in Nigeria is

and reduction programs are widely weak and its implementation is not
publicized. monitored to achieve its intended purpose.
(Abila and Kantola,2013)
I am fully aware of government
16 directives on waste management Ezeah and Roberts (2012) suggested that
particularly the ones on disposing public education and massive awareness
used beverage containers. programs on waste prevention would help in
managing waste.
17 The neighborhood I live is not Lagosians usually dispose of their waste in
littered with empty plastic bottles and an eco-unfriendly manner because of the
aluminum cans. inability of the waste management authority
to provide waste collection point in the
state.(Kofoworola, 2007)

18 Producers, particularly beverage The involvement of packaging and product

drinks and packaging producers are producers in the management of the post-
making efforts to encourage consumer phase of their products is limted.
consumers to return used containers. (Abila and Kantola, 2013)
19 I am aware of the designated centres “The Lagos state waste management
and agencies where one can return authority has invested in the establishment of
empty beverage containers. recycling village and recycling banks at
strategic locations within the state”.(Ezeah
and Roberts, 2014)
20 Government legislations will compel Dowlatshahi, (2001) stated that the
manufacturers to more responsive in introduction of different environmental and
the collection, recovery and reuse of packaging legislation have made producers
empty containers. to accountable for the negative externalities
of their products.
21 I am motivated to collect and return Cheng and Chiou-nab (2013), state that
my used beverage containers to the consumers are either financially or
producers or recyclers. intrinsically motivated to return used
beverage containers to producer
22 I would return empty plastic bottles organizations or recyclers.
and aluminum cans for a token of
10% of the price of the drink.
23 Producers of beverage drinks have The top producers of glass bottled drinks in
been effectively retrieving glass Nigeria have a deposit system for collection
bottles from consumers. However, of glass bottles which is similar to reverse
they are yet to do something tangible logistics system and such program is not
on the collection of used plastic available for plastic bottles and aluminum
24 bottles and aluminum cans. cans.(Oko and Anayo, 2013)
The extension of the circular
economy system of glass bottles to
plastic and aluminum cans will

80
 Appendix C: Recycling banks in Lagos
(LAWMA, 2011)

facilitate smooth return to producers.

Appendix C: Recycling banks in Lagos (LAWMA, 2011)

81
 Appendix D: Personal Observation on the
streets of Lagos

Appendix D: Personal Observation on the streets of Lagos

82
 Appendix D: Personal Observation on the
streets of Lagos

83
 Appendix D: Personal Observation on the
streets of Lagos

84
 Appendix D: Personal Observation on the
streets of Lagos

85
 Appendix D: Personal Observation on the
streets of Lagos

86
 Appendix D: Personal Observation on the
streets of Lagos

87
 Appendix D: Personal Observation on the
streets of Lagos

88
 Appendix D: Personal Observation on the
streets of Lagos

89
 Appendix D: Personal Observation on the
streets of Lagos

90