Limit waste production and optimize waste management
Terms of the action or commitment
Objective: achieve a 75% recycling rate for our waste by 2025
Glass plants generate waste at various stages of the production process, which the Group works to limit and recycle. Verallia’s business generates two main types of waste: so-called “normal” waste (metal production molds, pallets, plastics, etc.) and waste related to “factory furnace repairs”. In 2021, Verallia initiated a major project to reduce the volume of its waste by maximizing its efforts on “normal” waste:
– collecting data to build a benchmark on the volume of waste per site and per waste category;
– estimating economic losses for the year 2020: approximately €2 million of financial balance (gains – losses). These estimates take into account only the countries of the European Union with similar legislation;
– prioritizing sites according to the volume of waste produced;
– deploying action plans by plant;
– standardizing recycling definitions.
In 2021, another major project to reduce the volume of our waste was agreed. With the close involvement of the plants’ EHS teams, actions are being taken and best practices deployed in each region (installation of a centrifuge to reuse oil in Germany; recovery of ESP (electrostatic precipitator) dust in France; repair of pallets, composting or washing of soiled textiles in Latin America, Spain and Portugal).
The results: an overall volume of waste reduced by 10% (which, for example, corresponds to all the waste generated by Verallia’s Latin American plants), and a 2.5-point increase in the recycling rate between 2020 and 2021. Overall, we have reached an average recycling rate of 68% in 2021 compared to 65.5% in 2020.
In 2022, an additional lever will be activated with selective sorting at the plant. After creating a Group-wide map, the methodology consists of visually identifying, with management, the deviations and best practices.
The next step in 2023 is the launch of the “zero waste to landfill” project.
Glass plants generate waste at various stages of the production process, which the Group works to limit and recycle. Verallia’s business generates two main types of waste: so-called “normal” waste (metal production molds, pallets, plastics, etc.) and waste related to “factory furnace repairs”. In 2021, Verallia initiated a major project to reduce the volume of its waste by maximizing its efforts on “normal” waste:
– collecting data to build a benchmark on the volume of waste per site and per waste category;
– estimating economic losses for the year 2020: approximately €2 million of financial balance (gains – losses). These estimates take into account only the countries of the European Union with similar legislation;
– prioritizing sites according to the volume of waste produced;
– deploying action plans by plant;
– standardizing recycling definitions.
In 2021, another major project to reduce the volume of our waste was agreed. With the close involvement of the plants’ EHS teams, actions are being taken and best practices deployed in each region (installation of a centrifuge to reuse oil in Germany; recovery of ESP (electrostatic precipitator) dust in France; repair of pallets, composting or washing of soiled textiles in Latin America, Spain and Portugal).
The results: an overall volume of waste reduced by 10% (which, for example, corresponds to all the waste generated by Verallia’s Latin American plants), and a 2.5-point increase in the recycling rate between 2020 and 2021. Overall, we have reached an average recycling rate of 68% in 2021 compared to 65.5% in 2020.
In 2022, an additional lever will be activated with selective sorting at the plant. After creating a Group-wide map, the methodology consists of visually identifying, with management, the deviations and best practices.
The next step in 2023 is the launch of the “zero waste to landfill” project.
Levers mobilized for circular economy (according to Ademe)
Implementation timeline
Starting year
2020
Ending year
2025
