“The global circular economy reached a value of approximately $696 billion in 2024. This is an extremely small value if we consider, for example, that Tesla has a market value of about $800 billion.
According to estimates, the global circular economy will reach a value of $2.8 trillion in 2031.
A recent study showed that 7 out of 10 (73%) Romanians have purchased sustainable products in the last 12 months. 10% noted brand initiatives in the area of sustainability. 68% of Romanians believe that change must start with brands,” Valer Hancas, Corporate Affais & Communication Director, Kaufland Romania said at Sustainability Forward conference.
Key statements:
- Romanians have major expectations from the business environment to develop sustainability projects.
- When we talk about the circular economy, we can approach this topic from several angles. We should identify and transform certain types of waste into resources, so that they can be collected, recycled, transformed into elements that we can use.
- In 2023, we saved over 60 tons of food from waste, a 46% increase compared to the previous year. 263,000 kg of food were donated to charity actions and social canteens.
- Our goal is to reduce food waste in stores by 50% by 2030, compared to the level in 2019. We are optimistic that this target will be reached much faster.
- We have invested over 30 million euros in investments in the last 5 years to develop and optimize the collection infrastructure in Romania.
We are preparing two pilot programs for launch: 1) the first device for collecting Artesana containers, 2) the launch of a bulk reverse vending machine for DRS packaging
