News
Daily stories on the circular economy in Switzerland and beyond.
Empa project makes composite recyclable with epoxy resin
St.Gallen/Büsserach - The Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology (Empa) has created a completely recyclable, flame-retardant composite for the first time together with ELANTAS from Büsserach in the Swiss canton of Solothurn, part of the German specialty chemicals group Altana. These fire protection materials are used in trains and planes.
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Synhelion and Saipem plan e-fuel plant at RWE
Zurich/Milan/Essen - Synhelion has commissioned the Italian oil and gas company Saipem to carry out initial planning for a synthetic fuel production plant. The facility will be located at the site of the Essen-based energy company RWE in Hürth, near Cologne.
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Oxara plans to establish its construction materials in the UAE
Dietikon/Dubai - Oxara is seeking to bring its Oulesse products to the growing construction market in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The mineral binders for low-CO2 concrete products are to be manufactured and deployed via a network of local partners.
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ARCHISONIC Natura Cotton from Impact Acoustic gains C2C certifications
Lucerne - ARCHISONIC Natura Cotton, a material developed by Impact Acoustic for the purpose of acoustic absorption, has secured a Gold certification in the category of Product Circularity and Silver for Material Health in line with the Cradle to Cradle (C2C) Certified Standard.
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HEKS/EPER coordinating emergency housing repairs in Gaza
Zurich/Gaza City - HEKS/EPER launched a project in 2026 to carry out emergency repairs on damaged houses in Gaza. In so doing, it relies on a circular reconstruction approach. This is because Israel has prohibited imports of construction materials such as cement that might also be used for military purposes.
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REAL Luzern supports circular system for textiles with Fabric Loop
Emmen/Zurich - REAL Luzern has joined the Fabric Loop association. In this way, the municipal association, which is responsible for waste management and wastewater treatment for numerous municipalities in the Lucerne region, aims to contribute to the transparent and environmentally sound recycling of textiles.
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Venturelab boosting international growth of 10 cleantech startups
Schlieren - A jury has selected 10 cleantech startups for the 2026 Swiss National Startup Team. During a trip to Munich, Germany, organized by Venturelab, a startup support organization based in Schlieren in the Swiss canton of Zurich, they will meet investors, build strategic connections, and attend expert-led workshops.
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ZHAW team converts liquid bio-waste into energy
Wädenswil/Niederbipp/Vienna - Researchers at Zurich University of Applied Sciences (ZHAW), in collaboration with Austrian partners, have developed a biorefinery that converts liquid bio-waste into biomethane, biochar, and process heat. The technology could potentially cover around 7 per cent of the energy needs at the TELA GmbH paper mill.
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Swiss Fair Trade announces 23 nominees for Fair Fashion Award
Zurich - Swiss Fair Trade has published the longlist of nominees for this year’s Fair Fashion Award. In total, 17 organizations, projects and companies have been nominated in the “Emerging” category, with an extra six in the running in the “Established” category. This year’s Fair Fashion Award features the tagline “Against Exploitation, For Fair Work”.
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Mammut Sports Group acquired by Chinese company CPE
Seon/Zurich/Beijing - Jacobs Capital from Zurich is selling Mammut Sports Group AG to the Chinese investment firm CPE. Leveraging its network and capital, the new owners will seek to further accelerate the company’s growth across the Asia-Pacific region and North America.
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Grabher earns Digital Product Passport Compass Cradle to Cradle report
Widnau/Lustenau - Grabher Group GmbH now holds the Digital Product Passport Compass Cradle to Cradle report. Awarded by epeaswitzterland, based in Widnau in the Swiss canton of St.Gallen, the report covers all technical nonwovens produced at the Austrian textile products and textile finishing specialist’s Lustenau facility.
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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.
Read more →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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