Nothing beats Circularity & Innovation

The future is circular. We have to think in cycles. This starts with the design of the products and ends with their utilisation. Our ambition is clear: to become a fully circular company. In this article, we reveal where we stand on this path and which projects and product innovations we implemented in 2023.

By using recycled materials - not least from our own recycling plant - we are making an important contribution to closing loops. In the course of numerous pilot projects, we show what is possible. In order to continue along this path, we all need to work together along the entire value chain - without doubt a complex task. But one thing is beyond question for us: nothing works without the circular economy and innovation.

Projects & Innovation

In 2023, many innovative projects were continued and new projects launched. For example, NEVEON has succeeded in producing high-quality foam blocks with 80 per cent recycled content in the polyol component and transforming them into fully-fledged mattresses. The starting material for this is a repolyol that is obtained 100 per cent from old mattresses using a recycling process developed by BASF. Even though these mattresses cannot yet be produced on an industrial scale, they were used for the first time in 2023 in the René Bohn business hotel of BASF Gastronomy. 
 

At Greiner Packaging, we were able to use self-produced r-PET flakes from our recycling plant in Serbia for the first time in 2023. In collaboration with partners, Rauch brand drinks are also presented in supermarkets in trays made from 70 per cent PCR (post-consumer recycled) r-PET material. Waste from the yellow bag is used as the base material for the recycling trays. 
The rack-back initiative has been running at the Greiner Bio-One site in Mosonmagyaróvár, Hungary, since March 2022: empty, clean pipette tip racks are taken back, cleaned and offered to customers for reuse or recycled externally. 

Reducing waste

The proportion of recycled waste was 42 per cent in 2023 and 43 per cent in 2022. The target is 75 per cent by 2030. In 2023, we were able to significantly reduce the amount of waste sent to landfill. Globally, we landfilled 30% less waste than in the previous year (2,345 tonnes instead of 3,339 tonnes). Our goal is to landfill no more waste worldwide by 2030. As part of a pilot project at the Czech site in Nyrkso (NEVEON), a comprehensive analysis of the largest waste streams was carried out. Based on these findings, a detailed action plan was drawn up for 2024 with the aim of reducing the amount of waste previously disposed of in landfill sites. 

Focus on sustainable procurement 

Step by step, we are also working on aligning our procurement in such a way that we not only fulfil the legal requirements, but also achieve the targets we have set ourselves. This is only possible through close cooperation with our suppliers. We made further progress in this area in 2023: 77 per cent of our purchasing volume is sourced from suppliers who have signed the Greiner Code of Conduct or an equivalent code. More than 36 per cent of suppliers (more than EUR 500 thousand in purchasing volume) More than 36 per cent of suppliers (> EUR 500 thousand in purchasing volume) have a valid EcoVadis assessment. We will continue to promote the development of knowledge with the help of targeted training courses. As the Greiner Group, we achieved Gold status on the EcoVadis supplier platform in 2023 and are therefore among the top five per cent of companies rated by EcoVadis.