A.I.S.E. Position
The detergents and maintenance products industry welcomes the recently published New Circular Economy Action Plan. Our sector is keen to embrace the new opportunities and fundamental changes that the Green Deal, the Circular Economy Action Plan, the New Industrial Strategy and the Climate initiatives present. These are sources of inspiration to achieve a truly sustainable development, for the benefit of society, the environment and industry.
A.I.S.E. sees this package as a clear invitation to all stakeholders to undertake a major mindset shift and engage with this necessary transition. Building on its proven track record of voluntary action, A.I.S.E will proactively and constructively develop its next generation of meaningful projects to implement these goals, in dialogue with its value chain partners and stakeholders.
The products and services provided by our companies play a critical role for society as they help respond to vital needs for protection from disease and infection, but also for comfort and peace of mind. They are also key enablers for the durability of goods, surfaces and infrastructures - a key principle of the Circular Economy.
Our flagship initiative, the ‘Charter for Sustainable Cleaning’, has been tackling topics related to resource efficiency and sustainability since 2005. Regularly updated, the Charter also promotes the use of sustainably sourced materials including bio-based ingredients. Through this pan-European industry scheme, we want to offer consumers in Europe a common reference that is relevant and science-based, helping them contribute to sustainable progress. The Charter has a proven track record of delivering tangible improvement. Already in 2018, Charter companies have cut CO2 emissions by 40% per tonne of production, well ahead of the 40% by 2030 reduction target set by the EU after the Paris Agreement. Packaging use has been reduced by 32% over the same period. In addition, our experience as a pilot participant in the Product Environment Footprint will also be very beneficial to contribute to the new Circular Economy Plan and its related product policy initiatives.
On plastics, our sector put together a pledge in 2019 for the uptake of recycled packaging, including an ambitious goal to ensure all plastic packaging for household products is recyclable, reusable or compostable by 2025. As a signatory of the European Circular Plastics Alliance, we commit to cooperate via this multi-stakeholder and value chain platform to meet the targets of the EU Plastics Strategy. A.I.S.E. is also a key stakeholder for ECHA in its assessment on microplastics. And we see further opportunities for securing a reliable sourcing and supply of renewable/bio-based raw materials, as well as great potential in increasing the uptake of secondary packaging raw materials, notably plastic.
On textiles, we are keen to collaborate with our value chain partners to identify how further circularity can be enabled by the detergents sector.
In this journey, A.I.S.E. is committed to continue working constructively and proactively with its value chain on such priorities. This should help steer further tangible progress, stimulating innovation and competitiveness of the EU industry in a well-functioning Single Market.
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