Danish toymaker Lego has abandoned efforts to make its bricks from sustainable materials, after finding that the new material would lead to higher carbon emissions.
The company had been testing bricks made from recycled polyethylene terephthalate (RPET), but according to the toymaker, they required extra steps in the production process, and ultimately used more energy.
The result for the company was higher overall emissions. As a result, Lego said it has “decided not to progress” with making bricks from the material.
“We tested hundreds and hundreds of materials. It’s just not been possible to find a material like that,” Lego CEO Niels Christiansen.
The move, which was first reported in the Financial Times, will be seen as a setback after a high-profile push by Lego to improve its green credentials.
Lego had previously pledged to replace oil-based plastic bricks with sustainable ones by the end of the decade. To this end, the company says it is still testing and developing bricks made from “a range of alternative sustainable materials.”
“There is no ‘magic material’ to resolve the firm’s sustainability challenges,” Christiansen continued.
The decision is a reminder of the challenges that businesses face in making their products more sustainable. Finding materials that are both durable and environmentally friendly is not easy, and it is often a complex and expensive process.
“It’s like trying to make a bike out of wood rather than steel,” said Tim Brooks, the Lego group’s head of sustainability.
It remains to be seen when or if Lego will be able to develop sustainable bricks that meet its high standards. However, the company’s commitment to sustainability is clear. Earlier this month, the toymaker submitted its intention to the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) to achieve net zero by 2050 and will work with the initiative to develop targets to this end.
