The new Ege Carpets Sustainability Report has hit the streets. The report this year is an honest account of a year of shutdowns that have made it difficult to do business.

Covid19 cast long shadows all over the world, including the Ege Carpets business. Thanks to quick adaptation, great flexibility from the employees and various help packages, we managed to avoid deficits, although unfortunately we had to say goodbye to some talented employees. Nevertheless, we are optimistic about the future. We have shaped the organisational profile so that we are now sharper than before the crisis, and we have put sustainability even higher on the agenda

The ambitious sustainability strategy adopted by Ege Carpets in 2019 is being rolled out at full throttle across the group. All the 2030 goals will apply to all production units – and our contribution to meeting the UNSDGs (United Nations Sustainable Development Goals) and creating a sustainable future will be even greater. We have already begun work on getting all carpet in the entire Ege Carpets group Cradle to Cradle certified.

Also read about:

• A huge biodiversity project on our land in Herning, where more than 90 hectares of land will soon be transformed into wild nature.
• How far we have come with the 2030 strategy. We provide very specific figures for each and every goal.
• How many forms of reuse and recycling a production company can work with. There are plenty of options.
• What to do when many employees feel stressed after a year with Corona virus and uncertainty about the future.

Click here to download from their website here Our Sustainability Strategy | Ege Carpets

About Ege Carpets

Says Henrik Schmidt Hansen, Group CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) Director “Ege Carpets is a European carpet manufacturer, specialising in high quality carpet design. Sustainability is a core part of the production process, and all carpets across the group are now being Cradle to Cradle certified.

We are engaged in several activities to develop a shared industry solution regarding reduction of carpet waste globally. By means of our investments, we hope to contribute to a future decrease in carpet waste being wasted, and a global increase in carpet waste transforming into resources.

Simultaneously, we are dedicated to developing a carpet design that is built for recycling. We expect waste recycling plants to be built regionally within the next 5-10 years by waste treatment experts, and in 2030 all our carpets will be recyclable, reusable, or compostable in these plants.

One of our strategic targets is to increase recycled content in our carpet. We already use yarn from regenerated fishing nets and other industrial plastic waste, and our patented tile backing consists of 100% recycled plastic bottles. Last year that added up to 767 tonnes regenerated yarn and 47.5 million used plastic bottles in our carpets. However, it doesn’t stop there. By 2030, we expect 75% of all raw materials in our carpet to be recycled.

Closing the loop is part of our future strategy, and we are already well underway. 82% of the dyes used to create our stunning designs are constantly recycled in a closed loop system in the dying plant. The excess heat from the backing line is used to heat up local households, and the heated water from certain processes during production is used to clean the machinery. We sell our carpet offcuts for recycling in equestrian tracks, yarn waste is sent back to the supplier for recycling, cardboard cones are sent for recycling as egg trays, plastic packaging is sent to be recycled as new packaging and even Euro pallets are sold for recycling. In 2030 we expect all our waste to be recycled, regenerated or compostable.

We are founding members of Carpet Recycling UK and always refer our customers to Carpet Recycling UK partners regarding how to recycle carpet waste.

Sustainability is deeply embedded in our entire business. Our purpose is to design beautiful carpet for a sustainable future, and our 2030 Sustainability Strategy is to create sustainable carpet by turning waste into resources in closed loops, while becoming net carbon positive. We are already market leaders within sustainability with Cradle to Cradle certification and a history of reducing CO₂ emissions by 67% since 2007. We are front runners in social responsibility as well, with ISO 14001 (Environmental Management) ISO 45001 (Working Environmental Management) DS 49001 (CSR Management) and commitment to the UN SDG’s (specifically no’s 7, 12 and 14) and UN Global Compact since 2010.

We look forward to being part of the future solution to carpet waste and creating a more sustainable future together with Carpet Recycling UK and other partners”

Engaging with Designers