循环制造
致力于循环经济，将使用过的包装从垃圾填埋场转移，节约资源并减少原始材料的使用。
亮点
- We actively manage the life cycle of packaging through the manufacturing, reconditioning, reuse and recycling processes, as circular economy principles are an essential component of our Build to Last strategy.
- Greif’s Life Cycle Services network collects used and empty steel, plastic and Intermediate Bulk Container rigid packaging products and reconditions or recycles them, actively reducing the demand for raw materials and the number of containers sent to landfills.
- Our 2030 goals aim to make all Greif products recyclable, increase recycled raw materials across our products and recover a higher percentage of material from the market.
循环制造为何如此重要
Upholding and advancing circular economy principles is an important component of Greif’s Build to Last Strategy and our customer partnerships. We actively manage the life cycle of packaging through the manufacturing, reconditioning, reuse and recycling processes. Creating products that embody circularity and build on environmental and social capital requires collaboration with our suppliers, customers and other value chain partners. Waste diversion and material recovery strengthen our Circular Economy management and allow us to build stronger relationships with our suppliers. Collaborating and building partnerships across our value chain help us develop sustainable and innovative solutions to advance our collective goals, reduce environmental impacts, provide a more sustainable end-of-life for products and advance our corporate and sustainability objectives.
治理
Our circular economy strategy across our operations and value chain extends beyond using recycled products as we consider a cradle-to-cradle approach. As part of this strategy, we are working to drive circular economy principles in five key areas:
- 减少原材料的使用
- 减少废物和减少自然资源的使用
- 创新并提高产品的可回收性，并使用再生材料
- 一次性塑料的纤维替代品
- 生命周期服务
We reduce virgin raw material use by increasing our use of recycled material and through the lightweighting and downgauging of our products. Lightweighting and downgauging products reduce reliance on raw materials and keep new raw materials from entering our value chain. For instance, Greif Latin America developed a large plastic drum with a facetted side-wall approach that removed up to 14 percent of the resin in the drum while maintaining performance. The faceted drum supports our circular economy and decarbonization strategies by reducing natural resource consumption and lowering fossil fuel-based raw material usage and CO2 emissions during transportation.
We continue to design and develop products that are recyclable and made from recycled materials as we work toward our goals to make 100 percent of Greif products recyclable1 and achieve an average of 60 percent recycled raw material content across our products2. By using recycled materials and manufacturing recyclable products, materials remain useful within our value chain. We work with our customers and suppliers to increase the availability and use of recycled and recyclable products. Our EcoBalance product line is made using up to 75 percent recycled high-density polyethylene obtained from post-consumer containers and our Paper Packaging & Services (PPS) products are 99 percent recyclable based on volume.
EcoBalance™ IBC Drives Down Carbon Emissions
Greif supported German paint producer Schulz in significantly reducing its carbon footprint through its sustainable GCUBE intermediate bulk container (IBC) with post-consumer resin (PCR) and closed-loop recycling service.
Greif’s GCUBE IBC with PCR consists of 60 percent virgin PE and 40 percent PCR. For product integrity, the inner layer of the IBC bottle remains 100 percent virgin high density, while the external layer is primarily made from PCR. Additionally, most external components, such as corner protectors, plastic feet and plastic pallets, are produced with recycled polyethylene. The PCR is generated from the collection of empty IBCs, which are then treated in Greif’s reconditioning and recycling facility in Mendig.
Schulz used standard IBCs for many years and was looking for new ways to reduce their environmental impact. “Switching to the GCUBE IBC with PCR has supported us in achieving our sustainability goals by decreasing raw material consumption and reducing CO2 emission into the atmosphere,” explained a spokesperson from Schulz.
The GCUBE IBC with PCR extends the EcoBalance™ product line, including drums and other shipping containers made using PCR. The EcoBalance™ product line helps support Greif’s customers with their sustainability goals, including reducing carbon emissions and energy consumption and diverting waste from landfills. The EcoBalance™ product line helps support Greif’s customers with their sustainability goals, including reducing carbon emissions, energy consumption and diverting waste from landfills.
Greif’s Life Cycle Services (LCS) network across North America and Europe collects used and empty steel, plastic and Intermediate Bulk Container (IBC) rigid packaging products and recovered fiber and reconditions or recycles them to be suitable for reuse and resale. This work actively reduces the demand for raw materials and decreases the number of containers sent to landfills. Across our Global Industrial Packaging (GIP) business, we reconditioned, remanufactured or recycled more than 2.7 million containers in 2022. Our PPS business managed over 3.3 million metric tons of recycled fiber in 2022. Please refer to the 创新 section of this report for more information.
We aim to assist our customers and their customers with safe, economical and environmentally supportive collections of eligible used packaging. As part of this network, customers can receive reports through the Greif Green Tool and Green Tool Lite, enabling them to quantify impact by tracking key indicators such as carbon footprint reduction, waste reduction and material savings. More information about our circular manufacturing efforts and their impacts on water, waste and emissions can be found in this report’s 创新, 浪费 和 水 部分。
纸包装与服务
Greif operates 19 recycling facilities in our PPS business. Our facilities offer complete outsourcing solutions for plastics, pulp and paper fiber procurement, transportation and administration and provide complete paper fiber audit and management solutions. 99.2 percent of the products our recycling business handles, by volume, is paper fiber. Our paper fiber recycling operations collect wastepaper for use in our containerboard mills and for sale to other containerboard and recycled paper product manufacturers. Approximately 50 percent of the fiber we collect in our operations is used to manufacture paper products in consumer and industrial settings. We collect the remaining 50 percent of fiber for sale to external mills and other manufacturing operations to produce new paperboard, molded fiber packaging and other products. More than 78 percent of the fiber we use in our paper manufacturing is from recycled inputs. Due to our integrated capabilities, Greif operates as a net positive recycler, cementing us as a vital representative of the paper recycling industry.
Recovered fiber is an input to many essential goods. Before COVID-19, recovered fiber value was historically low, with a recovery cost higher than the fiber value for many recyclers. At the onset of COVID-19 in 2020, the supply of recovered fiber lagged behind the demand, resulting in a scarcity of fiber and continued high costs. However, at the end of 2022, the fiber market went through a shift that had not been experienced in decades, causing the price of recycled fiber to be often less than that of new fiber. As a result of this unprecedented shift, we are now focusing on re-educating customers on the advantages of recycled fiber. Our engagement efforts and industry group participation will help educate the market on changing industry dynamics, ensuring goods that depend on recovered fiber inputs remain viable businesses with a robust supply chain.
EasyPour Concrete Forming Tubes
Greif’s high-quality 100% recycled paperboard concrete forming tubes offer superior performance for demanding concrete projects, including columns, footings, piers and other structures. EasyPour tubes are one example of our efforts to commercialize new product lines that replace virgin-based products with recycled material products and remove plastic by incorporating our aqueous-based barrier coatings. EasyPour tubes also provide our customers with products that have improved end-of-life solutions, thereby advancing our circular economy strategy. EasyPour’s built- in weather shield technology provides moisture resistance and increased strength and durability. EasyPour tubes are LEED® qualified, made of 100% recycled paperboard produced by Greif mills and are fully recyclable and repulpable. In the past, we used Polyethylene liners in manufacturing our construction tubes.
In 2021 and 2022, we created a recyclable material alternative using paper. The development of this alternative is a significant step in reducing plastic waste.
全球工业包装
我们的 GIP 业务尽可能寻找再利用和回收机会。平均而言，我们的塑料产品中 90% 以上都是可回收的，我们内部研磨的塑料（按重量计算，约占我们桶和 IBC 的 20%）被 100% 重新用于我们的产品中。我们根据地区不同，使用约 5% 至 35% 的回收钢材来制造我们的钢铁产品。
目标、进展与表现
The broad quantity of steel, plastic and paper products covered by our LCS network is a tremendous asset for Greif. In 2022, a cross-functional team defined Greif’s global circularity goals and communicated them to the market. Greif is currently forming the teams necessary to achieve those goals in each business unit. In 2023, we plan to automate data collection for our 2030 targets, establish Circularity Teams to oversee our most important circularity workstreams and develop main action items and high-level roadmaps to help us achieve our 2030 goals.
2030年目标：
- 使 Greif 产品 100% 可回收1.
- 我们的产品中再生原材料含量平均达到 60%2.
- 从市场回收的材料平均相当于我们运往市场的 80%3.
Greif 产品的再生材料含量目标是指公司层面合并的材料和产品组合中按重量计算的最低平均值。
[3] Greif 产品的回收目标是根据公司层面合并的一系列材料和产品重量得出的最低平均值。
在 IBC 成型中使用再生塑料
Greif 位于 Carol Stream 的 Tri-Sure 工厂与 RIPS 北美采购部、RIPS 意大利和四家 RIPS NA 工厂合作，采购了 800,000 磅再生塑料树脂，用于生产 IBC 后/角脚和护角。这种内部采购策略将成本降低了 $100,000。该团队还重新使用空瓦楞纸散装箱来运输他们制造的再生产品，将瓦楞纸散装箱的购买量减少了 84%。该项目创造了公司价值并建立了环境和财务效益，同时关闭了两个内部循环系统，并通过将垃圾从垃圾填埋场转移并为其找到新用途为我们的循环经济做出了贡献。由于该项目对可持续发展的突出影响及其可扩展到其他成型和注塑设施的能力，该项目和 Tri-Sure Carol Stream 团队荣获了 2019 年 Michael J. Gasser 可持续发展奖。
地板行业的纤维回收
2020 年，我们位于佐治亚州道尔顿的回收工厂与道尔顿地区的地板覆盖物制造商合作，加工回收的纤维，并为纸板芯创建“闭环”。每年，道尔顿回收团队都会从这些制造商那里回收数万吨芯废料，并回收这些废纤维。Greif 的造纸厂使用同样的纤维制造 100% 回收的新纸板，然后在 Greif 的工业产品集团 (IPG) 将其转化为新的管和芯。这项举措不仅有助于维持道尔顿的回收计划，而且还能保持我们为 IPG 客户提供的卓越客户服务水平。每年，该计划有助于回收北乔治亚州地板行业的 25,000 吨芯、10,000 吨纸板、5,000 吨箱板和 2,000 吨塑料薄膜。
在葡萄牙修复锥形滚筒
过去 20 年来，Greif 位于葡萄牙伊比利亚的 RIPS 工厂一直为客户提供翻新的锥形滚筒，已翻新了超过 1000 万个滚筒，节省了 50,000 吨钢材、197,600 吨二氧化碳排放量、2,600,000 千兆焦耳的能源和 343,200 立方米的水。该项目最初是为了帮助满足客户减少浪费、降低碳足迹和全面提高客户满意度的愿望而启动的。该团队与客户合作，了解他们的需求，包括数量、规格要求和安全性，开发了翻新工艺，并最终安装了一条翻新生产线，开始为客户提供服务。如今，该工厂为众多客户提供服务，每年翻新 500,000 个锥形滚筒，节省 5,200 吨钢材。
通过投资和合资扩大从摇篮到摇篮的服务
2020 年，Greif 进行了投资并成立了多家合资企业，以扩大我们提供的再利用、回收和修复服务的规模和能力。4 月，Greif 收购了 Centurion Container LLC 的少数股权，扩大了我们在北美的中型散货容器 (IBC) 修复网络。8 月，Greif 与英国领先的修复 IBC 独立供应商 Delta Plastics 成立了合资企业。最后，在 12 月，Greif 收购了 LAF srl 的少数股权，扩大了我们为意大利客户提供的 IBC 修复服务。我们期待与合作伙伴合作，继续通过从摇篮到摇篮的解决方案减少对环境的影响。
里尔最先进的修复服务
Greif 位于法国里尔的 LCS 工厂已采取重大措施，革新与为客户提供修复服务相关的物流。传统上，空 IBC 会从单个客户所在的单一地点提货并运送到该地点。LCS Lille 已开始从客户供应链上的各个地点提货，然后将修复后的 IBC 送回客户，从而简化了客户的物流。里尔还实施了 Datamatrix，这是一种可追溯系统，使我们能够记录从接收到交付的所有生产步骤，了解 IBC 的来源，并实时查看我们的库存，以支持全面增强客户服务。Datamatrix 还支持更好地管理他们收集的 IBC 中的残留物。进入工厂的每个 IBC 都会自动称重，以确定容器中的残留物量并告知如何处理。借助 Datamatrix，这些信息可以直接发送回客户，以改善他们管理准备提货的 IBC 的方式。里尔采用闭环水系统来清洗IBC，并对其用水进行100%的回收利用，同时还收集、处理和粉碎用于制造新IBC和塑料桶的塑料。
为客户提供循环解决方案
CorrChoice GreenGuard® 产品系列为我们的客户提供食品安全、可回收和可再制浆的补充材料替代品，例如塑料衬里。我们的 GreenGuard® 系列纸张涂层可安全地与大多数食品类型直接接触，具有防油、防脂、防水、防潮和耐磨性，以及创新的蜡替代技术。通过将涂层应用于瓦楞纸容器，我们消除了许多食品应用中使用的补充材料的需求。我们与客户合作，确保我们的产品满足他们对安全可靠的食品处理的需求，同时提供 100% 可回收和可再制浆的包装产品，推进我们的循环经济战略，同时使我们的客户能够实现其可持续发展目标。
