Sustainability Report 2020: Circular Economy

Establishing a functioning circular economy will be the great challenge of the years ahead. In a circular system, materials and products are reused, repaired, reprocessed and recycled for as long as possible. This extends the lifetime of products and reduces waste to a minimum. In a circular economy model, resources are not repeatedly extracted from the environment and are instead integrated into a cycle. This slows the overexploitation of nature and available resources and protects our environment. Our plastic packaging is a key focus here, alongside our foam product portfolio. All too frequently, these two product groups are still incinerated or even, in some cases, sent to landfill. This is precisely what would be avoided in a circular system, where the materials are kept in circulation.