Strong EU circular economy is a win-win for environment and business

Today, the European Commission presented its new circular economy action plan (CEAP 2.0). This is a welcome action as European business has long supported the EU’s circular economy agenda.

BusinessEurope Director General Markus J. Beyrer said: "Today Europe wastes up to EUR 4.8 billion annually due to non-compliance with the EU existing waste legislation. Minimising waste generation and maintaining the value of raw materials and products for as long as possible is therefore not just good for the environment, it also makes business sense.

We urgently need a functioning market for secondary raw materials and circular products. The Commission’s action plan has a real potential to help achieve these markets. It can lead to better consumer awareness of wasteful behaviour, much higher demand for circular products, access to finance for SMEs and to new technologies and improved waste management systems.

Businesses across Europe are fully engaged to achieve a circular economy. We now look forward to work with policy-makers on the specific policy proposals that will follow this action plan."

European businesses are fully engaged as is shown by the nearly 200 examples on www.circulary.eu. For example, companies are working on new business models that aim to create value for consumers by extending the lifetime of products.

Read our priority paper on circular economy for the next EU political cycle.