Sustainability and Circularity take hold of the Toy Industry

Two major companies in the toy industry are embracing Sustainability and Circular Economy through their products: LEGO and ecoBirdy.

Supported by the EU’s program for the competitiveness of SMEs (COSME), ecoBirdy has launched its first collection of design furniture for kids made entirely from recycled plastic toys. The launch follows two years of research exploring how to sustainably recycle plastic toys.

“We found that plastic toys use plastic more intensively than other consumer goods: 80 percent of plastic toys end up in landfills, incinerators or in the ocean. By giving old plastic new life, our aim is to free our ecosystem from its pernicious impact,” commented Joris Vanbriel and Vanessa Yuan, Co-founders of ecoBirdy.

ecoBirdy’s collection includes chairs, tables, a storage container designed as a Kiwi bird and a rhino-shaped lamp. The plastic used to create the products is free from harmful chemicals and a 100% safe.

Meanwhile, the LEGO Group has joined the How2Recycle® initiative and will begin to provide US consumers with clear guidance on how to responsibly recycle their LEGO packaging later this year.

How2Recycle aims to promote recycling by reducing confusion through creating a clear, well-understood and nationally harmonized label that enables companies to convey to consumers how to recycle a package.

“LEGO bricks are designed to be reused and handed down through generations, but not everyone keeps their LEGO boxes,” said Tim Brooks, VP Environmental Responsibility for LEGO Group,

“Implementing the How2Recycle label on LEGO packaging is an important step in minimizing landfill through clear guidelines, encouraging consumers to responsibly recycle their packaging.”

By the end of 2018, over 60 percent of new LEGO boxes in the US will feature the How2Recycle label. The LEGO group also plans to further extend the How2Recycle label to nearly all new North American products during 2019.

This is not the only sustainable decision taken by the company. In the last few years, LEGO has reduced the size of all their packages, also a 100% of their paper and cardboard used in LEGOs products and packaging are sustainable sourced and certified by the Forest Stewardship Council. The company has also set a target to use sustainable alternatives to the current raw materials used for its LEGO products by 2030.

Source: ENLACE.