Iowa’s Bottle Bill Explained
Iowa | Beverage Containers Control Law
In April 1978, Iowa introduced its DRS through the Beverage Containers Control Law.
Iowa's bottle bill is administered by the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR).
The Iowa DNR released the results of a 2022 study on recovery rates associated with Iowa’s bottle bill in May 2025, including a 56% recovery rate for PET, a 42% rate for aluminum cans, and a 76% rate for glass bottles.
What's Included?
The article linked above lays out what is included under Iowa’s bottle bill and what is exempt:
Beverages Covered: Beer, carbonated soft drinks, soda water, mineral water, wine coolers, and wine and liquor.
Containers Covered: Containers sold in “sealed glass, plastic or metal bottles / cans.”
Exemptions: Non-mineral water, juice, tea, energy drinks, sports drinks / electrolyte drinks, and milk and dairy products.
What's the Refund Value?
Iowa uses a flat 5-cent refund value for all covered containers.
Impact of DRS in Iowa
Similar to New York, Iowa’s recycling rates are average when compared with other states with DRSs but are comfortably above the national averages for PET, aluminum, and glass.
PET recycling rate (2018): 38% (18.96 percentage points above the national average of 19.04%)
Aluminum recycling rate (2018): 62% (30.72 percentage points above the national average of 31.28%)
Glass recycling rate (2018): 68% (42.14 percentage points above the national average 25.86%)
[Data from 50 States of Recycling 2.0 by Ball Corporation & Eunomia.]
Using the same TOMRA data referenced for the other states, Iowa had a 49% recovery rate in 2022 for beverage containers covered by the bill—the second lowest among the 10 US states with bottle bills.
2026 Update
Unfortunately, the Container Recycling Institute (CRI) report we used to analyze the redemption rates of other DRS states does not include data for Iowa for 2024 or 2025.
The report notes:
“For Iowa, a detailed study conducted by CRI determined the state’s 2022 recovery rate for beverage containers on deposit at 49%. Recovery rate refers to containers redeemed through the state’s DRS, as well as those recycled through curbside or drop-off programs.”
Our team will be on the lookout for new redemption rate data from CRI or the Iowa DNR. For now, stay up to date with Iowa’s bottle bill here.
Read about the bottle bills in the nine other US states here.
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