It’s been another week of strategic partnerships and investment announcements in the circular economy. Let’s get stuck in!

Industry News

Sainsbury’s and RenEco partner to turn food waste into fuel. The waste processing company RenEco will utilise anaerobic digestion to create biofuel from food that would otherwise end up in landfill, powering up to 30 of Sainsbury’s trucks at the Emerald Park distribution centre in the UK. Read more.

Google and Dow partner to revolutionise soft plastics recycling with AI. This partnership leverages Google's advanced AI and machine learning capabilities and Dow's deep materials science expertise to enhance the efficiency of the recycling process for complex plastic materials such as films and flexibles. Read more.

TXO teams up with the Carbon Trust to raise awareness about e-waste impact. They have launched a digital tool that enables telecom operators to quantify carbon savings achieved by opting for refurbished network equipment over new, with potential reductions of up to 93% depending on the equipment category. Read more.

Klean Industries and KBR partner to inflate sustainable tire recycling. The companies have agreed to jointly develop solutions for recovering reusable commodities from end-of-life tires, focusing on producing high-value materials such as carbon black through advanced pyrolysis technologies. Read more.

Call2Recycle and RLG partner to enhance battery safety. The lithium-ion safety “LiSa” box is powered by circular solutions specialist RLG, integrates into Call2Recycle’s collection network, and is designed for shipping and storing damaged, defective, or recalled lithium-ion batteries. Read more.

Diono partners with REBEL to extend the life of its products. The recommerce platform REBEL will offer Diono’s open-box, overstock, and returned products to families across North America, at up to 50% off. Prior to sale, all products will undergo a rigorous quality check ensuring their integrity. Read more.

RL Equity and RL People sponsor and partner with the Industrial Auctioneers Association (IAA). The strategic partnership will see members of the IAA receive M&A advisory and investment support from RL Equity, and recruitment and executive search support from RL People. Read more about about the IAA here.

Procter & Gamble reinforces the need for strategic partnerships to accelerate circularity. From recyclable Vicks bottles to collection systems, P&G has stressed that partnering with circular solutions providers like Closed Loop Partners and the Recycling Partnership is essential to redesign products and boost recyclability. Read more.

EMR wraps up 4 year ground-breaking RECOAS project. Leading metal recycler EMR has announced the completion of its RECOVAS project. The project was focused on bringing expertise together to reduce waste and improve reuse during the production of EVs, and is poised to set new industry benchmarks for circularity. Read more.

Glacier’s AI robots enhance efficiencies in Recology’s South Seattle facility. Glacier, which we reported on last week, has deployed 4 of its AI-powered robots to work alongside humans in the facility. These robots, trained on billions of images, can identify over 30 material types, capturing up to 90% of targeted items. Read more.

Vinted tops the charts as France’s No. 1 clothing retailer. The second-hand fashion marketplace has outranked Amazon and Kiabi in sales volume, highlighting growing secondary market activity in the country. The European recommerce market was worth €94,000,000,000 in 2024 and is expected to grow significantly. Read more.

Circular solutions specialist Reconext completes major data centre decommissioning project. By reusing recovered servers, the project is projected to achieve a 40% reduction in energy consumption, a 60% reduction in physical space requirements, and an estimated 51% savings in capex compared to purchasing new equipment. Read more.

Cambridge's Cambrionix reaches new heights with ISS tech launch. Connectivity Innovator Cambrionix, which deploys its technology into high-volume circular technology environments, has achieved a significant milestone as its ThunderSync3-C10 hub was officially certified for use aboard the International Space Station (ISS). Read more.

Investment News

DHL Supply Chain acquires IDS Fulfillment to expand e-commerce capabilities. Building on its acquisition of reverse logistics leader Inmar Supply Chain Solutions, DHL has acquired IDS to significantly enhance its e-commerce service offerings to small and midsize companies. Read more.

John Deere invests $13,500,000 to expand remanufacturing in Missouri. The investment will add an additional 120,000 square feet to a facility that specialises in refurbishing engines, transmissions, and electronics to like-new condition, offering cost-effective and environmentally friendly alternatives to new parts. Read more.

DePoly secures $23,000,000 to launch PET recycling plant in Switzerland. The cleantech scale-up has raised seed funding to launch a 500-tonne-per-year processing plant that will break down PET and polyester plastics into their original building blocks, without relying on fossil fuels. Read more.

Arda Biomaterials raises $5,250,000 to convert beer waste into leather. Arda specialises in upcycling spent barley grain from breweries into New Grain™, a sustainable and plastic-free leather alternative that is biodegradable. This raise will enable Arda to advance R&D for this initiative. Read more.

Green Li-ion secures investment from VGW founder to scale battery recycling. This investment will accelerate the scale-up of Green Li-ion's patented technology, which offers up to a 90% reduction in carbon emissions compared to traditional mining of lithium, nickel, and cobalt. Read more.

German start-up textile recycler Eeden secures €18,000,000 in series A. The funding will build a demonstration plant capable of recycling complex polyester-cotton blends into their original building blocks (pure cellulose and PET monomers), ready for reuse as virgin-quality fibres. Read more.

The spotlight shines on Canada’s cleantech companies. Foresight Canada is accepting applications for its fifth Foresight 50, which showcases 50 of the most investable Canada-based companies tackling the world’s biggest environmental and economical issues. Read more.

Lot’s to digest! That’s a wrap for the week. Have a great one, and we look forward to connecting again next!

Cheers to circularity,

#TeamCircularConnect