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Carbon footprint
Reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and increased sourcing of recycled and renewable raw materials are at the core of our strategy and sustainability vision.
We have calculated carbon footprint of our operations and value chain and simulated our road map to reduce emissions taking into account Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions.
Orthex strives to continuously minimise its impact on the planet and to reduce its carbon footprint.
Carbon footprint of our operations and value chain
We have calculated the carbon footprint of our operations and value chain since 2020. In addition to direct greenhouse gas emissions from our operations (Scope 1) and the production of purchased energy (Scope 2), we included the following indirect emissions (Scope 3) in our calculation: purchased goods and services; fuel and energy-related activities; upstream transportation and distribution; waste generated in operations; and end-of-life of sold products.
The emission factors used in the market-based calculation of Orthex’s carbon footprint are based on widely used and trusted sources, such as the licensed databases of Ecoinvent and Sphera. When primary data from our suppliers is not available, average emission factors are used. Orthex's emission calculations have been carried out by a third party in accordance with the GHG protocol.
Most of our greenhouse gas emissions originate from purchased goods and services, such as raw material extraction, and the end-of-life of sold products, such as the incineration of products for energy. The latter is excluded from our target to reduce our emissions. This is because of our limited ability to influence consumer behaviour – whether they recycle or discard our products after use – but also because it is difficult to evaluate how the recycling of plastic develops.
As our products will be in use for decades, it is likely that by the time they reach their end-of-life stage, most plastic will be fully recycled. This, and future chemical recycling, will significantly reduce the greenhouse gas emissions from the end-of-life stage of plastic products.
The raw material has the biggest impact on the carbon footprint of the products. It is therefore increasingly important to increase the use of recycled and renewable raw materials in the production to reduce the carbon footprint of products. This is a key goal in our strategy. It is very important for companies and consumers to recycle all the plastic they use, since it can be re-used many times as raw material for new products. Read more about recycling of our products and packaging materials.
Road map to reduce emission
In accordance with our updated sustainability strategy, our main environmental target is to minimise our impact on the planet. This is why we have simulated our road map to reduce emissions, taking into account Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions. In 2021, we took a significant step and replaced fossil-based electricity with renewable electricity in all our factories. This is why our Scope 2 emissions are zero.
As almost all our remaining emissions originate from the raw materials (Scope 3), we focus our efforts on increasing the share of recycled and renewable raw materials in our production. Key drivers enabling us to move towards our goal are launch of products made of recycled raw materials, development of plastic recycling and recycling technology, new sources of raw materials, and innovations.
In 2022, Science-Based Targets initiative (SBTi) approved Orthex’s near term science-based emissions reduction target, which means that our climate targets are aligned with the target to keep global warming below 1.5°C in accordance with the Paris Agreement.
