Consumers will end up swallowing the costs for a Government bottle bank scheme, beverage companies are warning.

Government says it wants to encourage residents not to litter by introducing drop-off points where people will receive a deposit refund for every bottle they deliver.

The plans were unveiled in Friday's Throne Speech for the convening of Parliament. Acting Governor Mark Capes said: "It is no secret that clean communities contribute to a better quality of life and safer societies. Eliminating the anti-social behaviour of littering requires an incentive based partnership.

"The Government will introduce a Beverage Container Deposit System, commonly known as the Bottle Bill.

"This system will encourage citizens to refrain from disposing of beverage containers along the roadsides and the foreshore, and instead dispose of them at designated drop-off points in return for a refund of a deposit.

"We must Keep Bermuda Beautiful."

Yesterday Richard Lathan, executive director of Keep Bermuda Beautiful (KBB), was unavailable for comment. But beverage companies said the policy would impact on both business profits and consumers' wallets.

Charles Gosling, a managing director at Gosling's Export (Bermuda) Ltd., said: "I'm sorry the Government has decided to take this route without any kind of consultation with the beverage industry.

"This will affect both alcohol and non-alcoholic beverages and the end result is, it will be an inflationary cost to the consumer.

"How is this going to run? At some point a deposit is going to be put on these bottles and it's probably at the point of entry, so whoever is importing these products, we hope they will actually pay a deposit to some central organisation, whether it be a Government department like HM Customs and Excise or elsewhere.

"Say the deposit was 25 cents, then that's going to be added to the cost of the goods as the importer, the wholesaler and the retailer will each need to pass it on to the consumer."

Mr. Gosling said a KBB survey ten years ago reported only 1 percent of beverage containers were dumped as litter.

"I would say it is probably exactly the same now or slightly more," said Mr. Gosling. "Even though there's a large amount of litter on the roadsides, the amount of containers are less than 1 percent of products that are imported."

He added: "I think the main effect of this will be to create a terrible headache for bars, restaurants, nightclubs and hotels on the Island. And I doubt it will have any effect on the people littering. I think they will continue to litter."

Bruce Barritt, general manager of bottlers John Barritt & Son Ltd., was unavailable for comment yesterday.