News
Daily stories on the circular economy in Switzerland and beyond.
Nettle Circle wins Helvora Fundraising Award
Oberkirch/Ecublens - Nettle Circle has received the Helvora Award. The Lucerne-based startup, which is participating in the EPFL’s Tech4Regen support program, transforms certain nettles into Hilaya, a sustainable natural fiber. The prize gives Nettle Circle access to an Investment Readiness Masterclass offered by Helvora.
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Rieter, Säntis and Valvan join forces to form Recycling Powerhouse
Winterthur/Bühler/Menen - The Rieter Group, Säntis Textiles and the Belgian company Valvan have jointly established Recycling Powerhouse AG with its headquarters in Zug. Leveraging a global franchise network, their aim is to industrialize, standardize and scale textile recycling.
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Pardo Weekender Collection works with materials from Locarno Film Festival 2024
Lyss/Emmen/Locarno - Björn Ischi, pack easy and The Circulator have developed the Pardo Weekender Collection. The limited-edition bags from the collection are made out of materials from Locarno Film Festival 2024. The festival is a partner in the project.
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Fabric Loop presents roadmap for textile circular economy
Zurich - The association Fabric Loop has presented a roadmap up to 2035 for a circular economy in the Swiss textiles industry. Within nine years, all collected textiles in Switzerland are to be sorted, with 60 percent subsequently reused or recycled.
Read more →DePoly opens depolymerization plant in Monthey
Sion/Monthey - DePoly has opened a depolymerization plant in Monthey. The plant breaks down plastic into its original chemical components. The recovered raw materials can then be used in sectors such as packaging, textiles, automotive and electronics.
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Empa seeking to produce ethylene from recycled CO2
Dübendorf - Researchers from the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology (Empa) are working on the development of an electrolysis process for the production of ethylene on the basis of recycled carbon dioxide. The research is being carried out within the framework of the EU-funded REACT project.
Read more →Paprec and Metabader agree merger
Carouge/Le Mont-sur-Lausanne - The Paprec Swiss Group and Metabader are to merge. As Paprec Metabader, the newly formed group with more than 31 locations and subsidiaries will become a Swiss market leader in the area of recycling.
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Green Business Award presents finalists
Bern - BELIMO Automation, INFOMANIAK NETWORK, Vögeli, AgroSustain, OceanSafe and Meteomatics have advanced as finalists of this year’s Green Business Awards. The organizer, Green Business Switzerland, presents the award to companies that combine economic success with ecological impact.
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Perlen Papier launches recycled copy paper Perlencopy
Perlen - The paper manufacturer Perlen Papier has released a new product on the market: A recycled copy paper concept by the name of Perlencopy. It is manufactured in the canton of Lucerne using 80 percent collected and recycled wastepaper. With this new product, the company is offering a sustainable alternative to imported paper products from South America and Scandinavia.
Read more →Fourfold launches promotional award for CEE start-ups
Rapperswil-Jona/Budapest/Bucharest - The philanthropic foundation Fourfold has established the Positive Futures Award as it seeks to gain a foothold in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE). The prize was awarded to Recycllux from Bucharest for the recycling of marine plastic and to the Budapest-based Superjuice Kft, which turns the by-products of a juice-making process into tasty pet treats.
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Circlin and iceep offer fashion brands a platform for resale
Greppen/Uster - Circlin and iceep together form the technology backbone that enables fashion and lifestyle brands to launch circular resale, repair and recycling services. They are doing so by combining iceep’s take-back infrastructure with Circlin’s video-led resale platform.
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Vitra and Studio Πpresent lounge chair with recycled padding
Muttenz/Berlin - Vitra AG will introduce the Bascule lounge chair to the market in September. It has been designed in collaboration with designers from German Studio Πin Berlin. This piece of furniture does without adhesives and is designed with the repair and replacement of individual components in mind. The padding includes recycled fibers.
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AMAG names finalists in Family Business Award 2026
Cham - Bühlmann Recycling AG, Renggli AG, and Welz AG are this year’s finalists for the Family Business Award. The AMAG Group prize honors family-owned companies that are particularly committed to sustainability and have a long-term focus on value.
Read more →Proxipel inaugurates first mobile pellet production unit
Le Vaud/Gimel/Aubonne - Proxipel has put the first mobile Proxiflex pellet production unit into operation at its partner Lémanpellet. The aim is to process woodland waste on site and turn this into pellets. In this way, Proxipel is seeking to reduce carbon emissions linked to transporting such materials.
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FREITAG launches cooler bag
Zurich - Swiss bag manufacturer FREITAG has launched a new design: the F738 Cool Bag. Made from truck tarps, the cooler bag features an insulated inlay. It launched in a limited edition on 24 June 2026.
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FREITAG opens new store in Zurich
Zurich - FREITAG lab.ag has opened a new store in the Niederdorf district of Zurich. The company, which originated in Zurich, manufactures bags and other products by repurposing old truck tarpaulins and a range of other recycled materials.
Read more →Europe could meet half of its critical raw materials needs through recycling by 2050
Brussels/Bern/London - The use of recycling systems in Europe could enable the recovery of 4.1 to 5.7 million tons of critical raw materials from waste each year by 2050. At the same time, this could prevent 273 million tons of CO2 equivalent emissions each year. This is the conclusion reached by researchers from the FutuRaM project.
Read more →Gr3n closes Series B funding round at 15.5 million euros
Lugano/Madrid - Gr3n has raised 15.5 million euros from investors. The funds will be put towards the construction of a first industrial plant in Spain to process 100 percent of PET waste with up to 80 percent lower CO2 emissions compared with virgin PET. This process yields food-grade, infinitely recyclable monomers.
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Iceep brings its takeback solution to Western Switzerland with Revario
Uster/Marly - Revario and iceep have jointly launched a takeback solution for unused base layers in Western Switzerland. In the first few weeks, the solution was already being used for 13 percent of Revario’s online transactions. This points to circular models increasingly becoming part of the customer experience.
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New initiative aims to stimulate circular economy collaborations
Copenhagen - A delegation of companies from Switzerland, Slovenia and other countries has taken part in the LOOP forum in Copenhagen. Their joint appearance at nordic countries’ largest circular economy event represents the start of a deeper collaboration.
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Swiss textile industry gathers for third Swiss Edition NRP Sounding Board
Amriswil/Schwyz - The Swiss Edition NRP Sounding Board has brought together key players from the Swiss textile industry for the third time. Participants discussed topics including sustainable “Swiss-made” textiles as well as circular production models and knowledge transfer across companies sector-wide.
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Vetropack cuts the weight of its Rhine wine bottle to 350 grams
Bülach/St.Prex/Pöchlarn - Vetropack has developed a new 0.75-litre Rhine wine bottle and is launching it on the Austrian market. Used primarily for white wines, the bottle weighs 350 grams, is made from 80 per cent recycled glass and is considered the lightest Rhine wine bottle currently available in Europe.
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PIRMIN JUNG issues guidelines for circular timber construction
Sursee - PIRMIN JUNG Schweiz AG has published a set of guidelines for the planning and realization of circular timber construction projects. These are intended to provide a basis from which timber construction can become a circular building method and to reduce emissions in the construction industry.
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Businesses want improved funding policy for circular processes
Lucerne/Rotkreuz - Despite the economic benefits, companies' investments in circular economy processes are falling short of their potential. As Financial Services Zug at the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts has shown in its ESG Reporting Study, companies are keen to see more coordinated regulation.
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Green Business Award has 30 finalists
Bern - Green Business Switzerland has announced the names of the 30 companies from a wide range of industries that have been nominated for the eighth Green Business Award. For the first time, SMEs and scale-ups will be awarded separately.
Read more →Pilatus seeking to recycle prepreg waste from aircraft manufacturing
Stans/Zurich - The aircraft manufacturer Pilatus has launched a project that aims to recycle prepreg waste in conjunction with researchers from HSLU and inspire AG. At present, Pilatus disposes of more than six tons of this carbon fiber reinforced waste each year, which the company will now strive to re-use in its aircraft manufacturing processes.
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Revario opens its first showroom
Marly - Revario from the canton of Fribourg is opening its first showroom at the Marly Innovation Center. With this move, the sustainable sportswear brand aims to showcase the entire textile production chain directly at its manufacturing site.
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LAEMMLE Chemicals becomes part of SPIN
Madetswil/Zurich - The chemicals specialist LAEMMLE Chemicals AG from Madetswil has joined the Swiss Power-to-X Collaborative Innovation Network (SPIN). With its newest member, SPIN now encompasses expertise in sustainable specialty chemicals as well as hydrogen, e-fuel and synthetic gas technologies.
Read more →BE WTR expands its presence in Southeast Asia
Lausanne/Singapore/Hong Kong - The drinking water brand BE WTR is acquiring the company Porla in Singapore and Hong Kong. BE WTR has also formed a new licensing partnership for Thailand to facilitate its market entry.
Read more →Wheydrogen aims to make hydrogen from whey
Fribourg - Wheydrogen at the School of Engineering and Architecture of Fribourg is one of five finalists in the Swiss canton of Fribourg’s 19th Agricultural Innovation Prize. The project is developing a technology to convert whey into green hydrogen.
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