What is a circular economy and how can it help the planet?

In our current economy, businesses extract materials from the Earth, make products and packaging using them, and then they are eventually thrown away as waste. This process is defined as ‘linear’ and contributes to environmental issues like climate change, biodiversity loss, waste, and pollution.

A circular economy is one of the proposed solutions to this unsustainable status quo.

1. What is a circular economy?

   In a circular economy, waste is not produced in the first place. According to the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, the circular economy is based on three principles: eliminate waste and pollution, circulate products and materials, and regenerate nature.

   It involves exploring ways to ‘design out’ waste when products are still at the concept stage.

   The foundation adds: “A circular economy decouples economic activity from the consumption of finite resources. It is a resilient system that is good for business, people and the environment.

   “The process is underpinned by a transition to renewable energy and materials.

   “It gives us the power to grow prosperity, jobs, and resilience while cutting greenhouse gas emissions, waste, and pollution.”

2. Is there a difference between recycling and a circular economy?

   Recycling is an effective weapon in the fight against climate change but there are problems with tackling the issue of waste at the end of the product’s life.

   By 2015 six billion tonnes of plastic waste had been produced globally, but only 9% has ever been recycled. A total of 79% of that has ended up in landfill or our natural environment, leaving the remaining 12% being incinerated.

   In the UK, our official plastic packaging recycling rate is just 39% This means that more than 60% of all the plastic we use is ending up in landfill, incinerated or in our environment and oceans.

   In the face of our current environmental challenges, recycling won’t be enough to overcome the sheer amount of waste produced.

   The circular economy, however, goes right back to the beginning to prevent waste and pollution from being created in the first place.

   According to the World Economic Forum: “In a properly built circular economy, one should rather focus on avoiding the recycling stage at all costs.

   “It may sound straightforward, but preventing waste from being created in the first place is the only realistic strategy.”

3. What are examples of the circular economy in action?

   In the UK, over 95% of beauty packaging is thrown away after just one use, so personal care business Beauty Kitchen, has launched ‘Re’, a retail model that invites customers to return empty packaging with the Re logo to be washed and put back into the supply chain so they can be reused time and time again with zero waste.

   It also uses smart bottles made with steel, glass and washable plastics that can be taken to refill stations where customers can get laundry, homecare, personal care, food and drink products.

   The overall goal will be to save more than 100 million empty bottles from landfill within three years across the beauty and wider skincare and cosmetics industry.

   Another example is edible packaging made from seaweed. Indonesian company Evoware is trialling using seaweed to create a plastic-like packaging that can be safely eaten.

   The material is being looked at for wrapping for sandwiches, burgers and other snacks, as well as to replace plastic sachets for instant coffee and noodle seasoning – both huge sources of plastic waste.