Lego Group aims for 100 percent sustainable packaging by 2025

26 Apr 2018 --- LEGO has announced ambitions to replace single-use disposable plastics and only use recycled or sustainably sourced bio-based materials for all plastic-based packaging as part of the company’s 100 percent sustainability goals for 2025.

In 2015 the LEGO Group announced its ambition to use 100 percent sustainable materials in both its bricks and packaging by 2030. Now the LEGO Group have announced that they are aiming for 100 percent sustainable packaging by 2025.

Currently, the majority of LEGO packaging, by weight, is cardboard or paper-based which is recyclable, sustainably sourced and certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC).

Tim Brooks, Vice President Environmental Responsibility at the LEGO Group said: “To support our company mission, we have a Planet Promise and we have pledged to play our part in protecting the planet for future generations. Using sustainable packaging is an important part of fulfilling that promise. By bringing forward our ambition on sustainable packaging, we are also acknowledging the need to find better packaging solutions sooner. We’ve made good progress in the past three years, and there is still work to do.”

LEGO bricks are designed to be reused and handed down through generations, but not everyone keeps their LEGO boxes and other packaging. As some of the LEGO packaging contains single-use disposable plastics, which today are not sustainable, and in some cases cannot be recycled by consumers, the LEGO Group is actively taking measures to improve its packaging sustainability.

Tim Brooks added: “By 2025, our aim is that no LEGO packaging parts have to end up in a landfill. Packaging will be made from renewable or recycled materials and will be easy for consumers to recycle.”

The LEGO Group has taken several steps to improve the sustainability of its packaging:
•    In 2018, the company began using recycled plastic in packaging “blisters” - the transparent plastic windows which allow consumers to have a sneak peek into some LEGO boxes.
•    This year, LEGO boxes in the US and Canada started to feature the How2Recycle label promoting packaging recycling and providing US and Canadian consumers with clear guidance on how to responsibly recycle their LEGO packaging.
•    In 2017, plastic trays used in Advent Calendars were replaced with recyclable paper-pulp trays, saving up to 1 million plastic trays from going to the landfill. Approximately 75 percent of cardboard used to make LEGO boxes comes from recycled material.
•    The average size of a LEGO box has been reduced by 14 percent over the past four years, improving transport efficiency, saving on average every year over 3,000 truckloads and 7,000 tons of cardboard.
•    All paper and cardboard used in LEGO products and product packaging is recyclable, sustainably sourced and certified by the FSC.

The LEGO Group’s sustainable packaging ambition focuses on finding sustainable packaging alternatives that are:
Renewable: 100 percent of LEGO boxes, bags, and special packaging are to be made from recycled or sustainably sourced bio-based materials.

Efficient: continuing to explore ways to optimize packaging, balancing consumer appeal with environmental action.

Recyclable: designing packaging that facilitates consumers to recycle in our major markets.

The LEGO Group believes a new sustainable material must have an ever-lighter footprint than the material it replaces across key environmental and social impact areas such as fossil resource use, human rights and climate change.

The LEGO Group partners with the World Wildlife Fund for Nature (WWF), as part of efforts to reduce CO2 emissions in manufacturing and supply chain operations and promote global action on climate change.

Through investments in wind power, the energy used to make LEGO bricks is balanced by the production of renewable energy.

Plastic pollution continues to dominate the news, with record levels of microplastics recently discovered in Artic Sea ice.