MILAN — November 9, 2022 — Alcantara plans to increase the use of recycled post-consumer polymers in its luxury “Made in Italy” material for the fashion, consumer-electronics and automotive industries, according to the company’s annual sustainability report.
Alcantara Chairman and CEO Andrea Boragno said the company is introducing new material with greater proportions of recycled polymers that could lead to products that rely solely on recycled material within the next three to five years.
The new material is certified to be from 68 percent post-consumer recycled polyester produced in Europe and covered by the RCS (Recycled Claim Standard). The recycled polymers are obtained from waste material to prevent plastic from being sent to landfills, incinerated or discharged into the ocean.
A corporate leader in the implementation of environmental initiatives, Alcantara was certified as Carbon Neutral in 2009. It is the first Italian industrial company and one of the world’s first companies to achieve Carbon Neutrality status.
Alcantara’s recently issued sustainability report (https://sustainabilityreport.alcantara.com/ ) notes that its offset emissions amounted to 42,461 tons of CO₂ emissions during the last fiscal year.
Over the past 13 years Alcantara has supported 50 offset projects, including programs involving wind power, solar and hydroelectric in countries such as India, Turkey and Uganda.
The company also was able to avoid 15,272 tons in CO₂ emissions thanks to trigeneration and cogeneration systems in place at its facilities in Italy.
“Sustainability is the most critical issue of our times,” Boragno says. “That’s why it is a core value deeply rooted in our corporate culture and an important growth driver of our business strategy development.”
He adds that Alcantara is a member of the United Nations Global Compact and is committed to advancing the United Nations sustainable development goals.
Alcantara’s cradle to grave approach involves the measurement of all CO₂ emissions at every stage of its product life cycle from raw materials and production processes up to the product’s use and end-of-life.
Today the company also provides its automotive customers with specially customized products developed by its Complex Manufacturing Department at Alcantara’s production plant in Nera Montoro, Italy. The department provides uniquely branded and customized seating, headliners, floor mats and other products for companies such as Lamborghini, Ford, Maserati, McLaren, Jaguar and Alfa Romeo.
Alcantara, a “Made in Italy” lifestyle brand, was founded in 1972. Today Alcantara® can be found on leading brands in a variety of fields, including the auto industry, the world of fashion and accessories, interior design, home decor and consumer- electronics.
Posted: November 10, 2022
Source: Alcantara S.p.A.
