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Milk in returnable bottles exists here. The bottles usually look like this: https://contentpool.wirtschaftsverlag.at/files/uploads/images/2019/03/12/spar_natur

Milk in returnable bottles exists here. The bottles usually look like this: https://contentpool.wirtschaftsverlag.at/files/uploads/images/2019/03/12/spar_natur_pur_bergbauern_bio-milch_jetzt_in_der_mehrweg-glasflasche.jpg https://contentpool.wirtschaftsverlag.at/files/uploads/image... From the look it is a half-liter bottle (we usually buy cream like this), there are 1 liter bottles for milk that look almost the same.

javajosh 7y ago
Hmm. They don't sell that at Lidl - and are you sure the containers are reused? I don't see the tell-tale scuff ring.
- _Microft 7y ago
  You can find them at Rewe or Edeka for example. It is a Mehrwegflasche which means they are cleaned and reused instead of being recycled. What is a scuff ring by the way? Is it this ring that tears off from plastic caps at e.g. Coca Cola bottles when opening them?
  - javajosh 7y ago
    Here is a photo that shows what I mean: https://images.app.goo.gl/hnbaFiZtWAN7Aj5x5 https://images.app.goo.gl/hnbaFiZtWAN7Aj5x5 It looks like the bottles rub against each other at that point, and it indicates the bottle is old/has been used a bunch of times. Is there a German word for it?
    - _Microft 7y ago
      Thanks! They are called "Umlaufspuren" (literally ~traces of circulation) according to the german Wikipedia-page for "Mehrwegflaschen." I will look out for them.
stinos 7y ago
This used to exist, and was even fairly common, in many countries. Moreover it was brought to your door by the milkman. And that milkman sometimes also had eggs and even vegetables from local farmers. This disappeared, driven by economics/capitalism/'supermarket=freedom'/..., not because it's bad per se. In fact there's quite some benefits to that whole system from an ecological point of view. Which leads to sort of funny situations: locally it's been about 20 years since the milkman made his last round. Now there's again a company starting to do a similar thing (bring bottled milk/juice, local farmer's products to your door weekly) and some people who don't know better consider it revolutionary, and the poor company can't keep up with demand :)
- the-dude 7y ago
  In NL these were electrical vehicles.
- mattrp 7y ago
  Well I do find it interesting that last mile grocery delivery is kind of like a modern day milkman..
dnh44 7y ago
In the UK we get milk in those bottles delivered by the milkman. We leave the empty ones out as well to be collected.
- pgeorgi 7y ago
  Careful about the milkman: https://youtu.be/lZTrb49wi3o?t=30 https://youtu.be/lZTrb49wi3o?t=30 (scene from James Bond, The Living Daylights) That movie was the first time I learned about "milkman" being a job. We had glass bottles that we filled ourselves at a self-service station that a farm just outside the city set up.
dEnigma 7y ago
That is a one litre bottle of milk as sold by SPAR in Austria.
mxfihdsgyxegaas 7y ago
These bottles are sold at Spar, Aldi (Hofer) and many others. However they don't have Pfand and are not reused at the moment [1]. At least not comercially. They make great containers for sugar or flour. According to the source they will start the reusing "beginning 2020". 1. https://www.spar.at/nachhaltigkeit/produkte/verpackungen/mehrweg https://www.spar.at/nachhaltigkeit/produkte/verpackungen/meh...

javajosh 7y ago

Hmm. They don't sell that at Lidl - and are you sure the containers are reused? I don't see the tell-tale scuff ring.

_Microft 7y ago
You can find them at Rewe or Edeka for example. It is a Mehrwegflasche which means they are cleaned and reused instead of being recycled. What is a scuff ring by the way? Is it this ring that tears off from plastic caps at e.g. Coca Cola bottles when opening them?
- javajosh 7y ago
  Here is a photo that shows what I mean: https://images.app.goo.gl/hnbaFiZtWAN7Aj5x5 https://images.app.goo.gl/hnbaFiZtWAN7Aj5x5 It looks like the bottles rub against each other at that point, and it indicates the bottle is old/has been used a bunch of times. Is there a German word for it?
  - _Microft 7y ago
    Thanks! They are called "Umlaufspuren" (literally ~traces of circulation) according to the german Wikipedia-page for "Mehrwegflaschen." I will look out for them.

stinos 7y ago

This used to exist, and was even fairly common, in many countries. Moreover it was brought to your door by the milkman. And that milkman sometimes also had eggs and even vegetables from local farmers. This disappeared, driven by economics/capitalism/'supermarket=freedom'/..., not because it's bad per se. In fact there's quite some benefits to that whole system from an ecological point of view. Which leads to sort of funny situations: locally it's been about 20 years since the milkman made his last round. Now there's again a company starting to do a similar thing (bring bottled milk/juice, local farmer's products to your door weekly) and some people who don't know better consider it revolutionary, and the poor company can't keep up with demand :)

the-dude 7y ago
In NL these were electrical vehicles.
mattrp 7y ago
Well I do find it interesting that last mile grocery delivery is kind of like a modern day milkman..

dnh44 7y ago

In the UK we get milk in those bottles delivered by the milkman. We leave the empty ones out as well to be collected.

pgeorgi 7y ago
Careful about the milkman: https://youtu.be/lZTrb49wi3o?t=30 https://youtu.be/lZTrb49wi3o?t=30 (scene from James Bond, The Living Daylights) That movie was the first time I learned about "milkman" being a job. We had glass bottles that we filled ourselves at a self-service station that a farm just outside the city set up.

dEnigma 7y ago

That is a one litre bottle of milk as sold by SPAR in Austria.

mxfihdsgyxegaas 7y ago

These bottles are sold at Spar, Aldi (Hofer) and many others. However they don't have Pfand and are not reused at the moment [1]. At least not comercially. They make great containers for sugar or flour. According to the source they will start the reusing "beginning 2020". 1. https://www.spar.at/nachhaltigkeit/produkte/verpackungen/mehrweg https://www.spar.at/nachhaltigkeit/produkte/verpackungen/meh...