From 2021: paper to replace plastic bags inside LEGO sets

This is the announcement of the day: LEGO says it wants to invest the modest sum of $ 400 million over three years to accelerate the process of transition to a manufacturing process and more eco-responsible products.

Among the initiatives presented, we will particularly note the one which aims to permanently remove the internal plastic under-packaging currently present in LEGO sets by replacing them by 2025 with recyclable paper bags from responsibly managed forests. It will then be possible to consider that the entire packaging of a classic LEGO product will be recyclable: we will have plastic wrapped in paper that will be put in cardboard, all accompanied by a paper notice.

From 2021, a test phase will launch this replacement process with new sachets that have already been tested with hundreds of children and parents. It took two years and around fifteen prototypes to obtain the ideal bag, light, easy to open and to recycle. Judging from the visuals below, this new pouch will no longer be transparent.

On the sidelines of this very concrete initiative, LEGO confirms that it is continuing to work on the eco-responsible material which should one day replace ABS plastic in the manufacturing process of bricks and other elements. We often think that in 2015, the brand set itself the objective of achieving convincing results by 2030.

To date, LEGO has already successfully produced a biopolyethylene made from ethanol from the distillation of sugar cane and which is used for around 2% of the items in the catalog. LEGO promises that this "green" polyethylene will be at least as durable, flexible and durable over time as the plastic currently in use, those who purchased the set LEGO Ideas 21318 Treehouse can tell us about it again in a few years, it incorporates 185 plant elements made from this plastic.

This biopolyethylene is (fortunately) not biodegradable but it is recyclable via the same processes as conventional polyethylene. It should also be remembered that the use of sugar cane does not change either the manufacturing process or the mechanical and aesthetic properties of the plastic obtained at the outlet.

LEGO specifies that the investments made to arrive at the replacement of ABS for its entire inventory relate both to the research and testing phase of the miracle material but also to the design and manufacture of the industrial equipment that will be necessary. to its manufacture.

LEGO finally announces that its manufacturing operations will be carbon neutral by 2022 through the use of renewable energies for all production units installed around the world. In terms of recycling production waste, LEGO indicates that 93% of the waste produced is currently recycled, including 100% of plastic residues from production units. By 2025, the manufacturer intends to achieve 100% recycled waste.