Viennese sausage stalls want to be “places that are frequented by many”.

But she wasn't just there for the food, she was there at Geussler's request One-way deposit regulation I decided to take it off January 1, 2025 It is implemented in Austria. to Plastic bottles and Drink cans A deposit of 25 cents will be charged in the future. When customers return the empties, they will receive a refund. According to regulations also in sausage stands.

Climate protection is the order of the day

They had just started the “Wiener Würstelstand” earlier. Using bottles instead of plastic and an extra 5 cents effort. “The need of the hour is to implement climate protection. In addition to proof of origin and organic sausages, waste avoidance is also an important element,” says Lanner.

However, the hot dog stand owner wasn't sure from the beginning that the deposit system would actually work. “We didn't know if we were going to have any problems with it storage “It will be,” Lanner says. But success has now been achieved. The empties are taken away every day on a cargo bike. To the storage area of ​​the hot dog stand.

Most stands do not have storage space

And that's exactly the crux of the matter, he says René Kachler, sausage stall operator “Zum Spice René” and board member of the Vienna Sausage Stall Association. “Many people don't have storage space. Deliveries even happen two to three times a week.” The association indicated this in an open letter to Environment Minister Goessler at the beginning of August, as reported by the Kurier newspaper.

Since then, the position of sausage stand operators has changed somewhat: just two months ago, they wanted an exception stating that businesses with a sales area of ​​less than 25 square meters would be exempt from the refund obligation. The association now wants hot dog stands to also be subject to the current exemption. Specifically, you want – such as airports, train stations or shopping streets – “Places he frequents frequentlyIt is calculated. If the location where the hot dog stand is located is considered a highly frequented place, the hot dog stand operator can agree with a nearby supermarket that customers can drop off their deposit bottles and cans there. “You could say that every hot dog stand in Vienna is in a place where there are a lot of people,” says Rene Kachler. “Accordingly, we are demanding one Clarification of this regulation“.

Financial compensation

When asked by Currier, he says who Ministry of EnvironmentThe details of the regulation were developed with the participation of small business stakeholders. Therefore, small shops and kiosks will only have to “take back what they sell”, and more specifically regarding the exemption in places frequented by people: “Depending on the location, a sausage stand can also benefit from this exemption, for example, entering into an agreement.” This agreement is with the supermarket.

But what the hot dog stand is missing is financial compensation. For every deposit bottle or can that is manually returned, he will receive about 3 cents. As compensation for expenses, so to speak. Plus, deposits often turn into tips, explains Mike Lanner of Vienna's Hot Dog Stand.