What Afval Loont does

Afval loont was a Dutch for-profit social enterprise founded by Jørgen van Rijn in late 2010 that operated a reverse-revenue waste collection model: instead of charging customers to dispose of waste, it paid individual residents a monetary reward per kilogram of separated household waste (plastic/metal/drink cartons, paper and cardboard, textiles, small electrical appliances, and frying fat). Residents registered via the company website and identified themselves at branches using a card or app, accumulating balances that could be transferred to a bank account (above a €10 payout threshold) or donated to local charities, sports clubs, schools, and food banks. The company served general consumers across six municipalities in the Netherlands (Pijnacker-Nootdorp, Rotterdam, Barendrecht, Noordwijk, Den Haag, and Schiedam), with 21,378 registered savers and €1,005,801 paid out to participants and charities across its operating life.

The core product combined a physical retail branch network — 13 fixed stores plus a mobile "Wisseltruck" sited near supermarkets, sports facilities, and schools — with a custom in-house software system for registration, collection tracking, payout processing, and reporting, integrated with custom hardware (roller banks, scales, screens, crates). A "Donateur Dashboard" provided savers with a digital view of deposits and balances. The company monetized this footprint indirectly via the resale of collected raw materials rather than direct consumer fees, and it also functioned as a social-employment vehicle, employing 21 staff explicitly described as having "distance to the labor market."

The business model was a hybrid: revenue came from selling collected recyclables, while shareholder capital came from a strategic mix of mission-aligned investors — Rebel Group (advisory) and Renewi/Van Gansewinkel (waste collector) joined as shareholders in mid-2013, followed by Social Impact Ventures Nederland in late 2015, plus a 2016 funding round of approximately $552,914 led by Rubio Impact Ventures. Cumulative revenue was approximately €1 million over nine years with a positive result, but the company was unable to scale beyond its 14 locations and shareholders jointly closed all branches on December 31, 2019.

Name

Afval Loont

Legal name

Afval loont

Website

https://afvalloont.nl

Company type

Private

Founded year

2010

Operating status

Closed

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Afval loont was a Dutch social enterprise that paid individual residents monetary rewards per kilogram of separated household waste — plastic, paper, textiles, small electronics, and frying fat. It operated 13 retail branches and a mobile unit across 6 Dutch municipalities from 2011 until ceasing operations on December 31, 2019.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Waste Management and Recycling Services

NAICS

Solid Waste Collection (562111), Waste Collection (56211)

SIC

Refuse Systems (4953), Sanitary Services (4950)

akta.pro primary industry

Pay-As-You-Throw (PAYT) & Subscription Collection Programs (BPALAAAI)

akta.pro secondary industries

Recycling & E-Waste Collection/Hauling (HSAKALAJ), E-waste & Universal Waste Collection/Transfer (Electronics, Lamps, Batteries) (EUAIABAG)

Keywords

• Waste collection services
• Household recycling programs
• Waste-to-reward systems
• Circular economy services
• Incentive-based recycling

Headquarters

HQ city

Rotterdam

HQ country

Netherlands

HQ region

Europe

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Waste Material Sales Revenue: Revenue generated from selling collected raw materials (packaging plastic/metals/drink cartons, old paper and cardboard, textiles, small electrical appliances, and frying fat). Profit was realized from the proceeds of delivered waste, distributed to savers and charitable causes.
2. Branch Operations Revenue: Company achieved €1,000,000 in revenue with a positive result over nine years of operations across 13 stores and 1 mobile branch.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels2 records

Core offering

Afval Loont operated an innovative waste collection service that paid residents monetary rewards per kilogram for delivering separated household waste, including plastic/metal/drink cartons (PMD), paper and cardboard, textiles, small electrical appliances, and frying fat. The service was delivered through 13 physical branch locations and one mobile branch (Wisseltruck) across 6 Dutch municipalities, supported by a custom software system for registration, intake tracking, payouts, and reporting. Residents could opt to have balances transferred to their bank account or donated to local charities and food banks.

Product overview

Afval Loont operated as a unified waste collection and recycling service combining physical drop-off infrastructure with a custom digital platform. The core offering was the Afval Loont service at 13 fixed branches and one mobile Wisseltruck, where residents could exchange separated household waste for monetary rewards. This was supported by the internally developed Donateur Dashboard for saver account management, integrated with custom software handling all registration, intake, payments, and reporting operations.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Afval Loont waste collection service Innovative waste collection service where residents received monetary rewards per kilogram for separately delivered household waste including plastic/metal/drink cartons (PMD), old paper and cardboard, textiles, small electrical appliances, and frying fat. Service aimed to change behavior by demonstrating that waste has value as raw materials. Balances could be paid out to bank accounts (minimum €10) or donated to local charities and food banks.
• Filialen (Branches) 13 physical collection locations where residents delivered separated waste and received monetary rewards credited to their digital accounts. Modern and appealing branch design located near supermarkets, sports facilities, and schools for convenience.
• Wisseltruck (Mobile Branch) A mobile branch that provided waste collection services, complementing the fixed physical locations and extending service reach.
• Donateur Dashboard Digital dashboard for registered savers to track their waste deposits, savings balance, and manage account settings. Identification at branches was performed via a card or app integrated with the dashboard.

Quantifiable outcome

• 15,182,345 kg of raw materials collected over 9 years
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Direct peers

• TOMRA: TOMRA's Collection division operates reverse-vending and deposit-return systems that pay consumers for returning beverage containers and other recyclables. It is directly comparable to Afval Loont's reverse-incentive, citizen-paid collection model, though TOMRA focuses on deposit streams via machines rather than branch drop-off.

Broad incumbents

• Renewi: Renewi is a major Dutch and Benelux waste collector and processor (formerly Van Gansewinkel) and was an Afval Loont shareholder from 2013. It is broadly comparable as the operator of MSW, recyclables, and specialized waste collection streams that overlap with Afval Loont's material categories.
• PreZero: PreZero is the Schwarz Group's recycling and environmental services arm operating across Europe. It is broadly comparable as a multi-country operator covering collection, sorting, and recycling services for household and commercial streams.
• Veolia: Veolia (post-merger with SUEZ) is one of the largest global environmental services and waste management companies. Comparable as a broad incumbent offering MSW collection, recyclables sorting, and treatment services overlapping with Afval Loont's operations.

Regional players

• Attero: Attero is a Dutch waste processor handling household, commercial, and organic waste streams. Comparable as a Netherlands-domestic waste management operator serving municipal and household recyclables, the same material flows Afval Loont collected.
• HVC: HVC is a Dutch waste and energy company processing household and commercial waste for municipalities in North Holland and Flevoland. Comparable as a regional MSW/recyclables operator overlapping with Afval Loont's collection categories.

Others

• Statiegeld Alliantie: The Dutch Deposit Alliance coordinated by Verpact and retail partners rolled out a small PET bottle deposit-return scheme in the Netherlands. Comparable as a Dutch incentive-based collection system paying consumers for returning recyclables, conceptually aligned with Afval Loont's reverse-PAYT model.

Emerging players

• Recycle Coach: Recycle Coach provides municipal recycling apps that educate households on what and how to recycle. Comparable as an enabling software layer for household recycling behaviour, conceptually adjacent to Afval Loont's digital saver platform for waste intake tracking and payouts.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/afvalloont

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors3 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Afval Loont