The latest technological innovation for the LEGO Group allows more than 90 of the company’s elements to be made from a new sustainable material rather than typical non-renewable plastic.
The LEGO Group is using a new renewable type of plastic made from a material called e-methanol. It’s strong and durable enough to produce the plastic for more than 90 elements in the parts catalogue, including cross-axles, connector pins, steering wheels and minifigure accessories.
This is part of the company’s collaboration with Novo Nordisk and European Energy, with the partners investing into technologies that can replace non-renewable plastic with more sustainable alternatives. E-methanol is made from renewable energy or biomass and a process called Power-to-X. The renewable energy source is used to produce hydrogen that is then combines with carbon emissions that would otherwise be released into the atmosphere to make the plastic.
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“We are proud to join forces with Novo Nordisk to accelerate research and progress in the development of lower-carbon plastics,” said LEGO Vice President of Materials Nelleke van der Puil when the collaboration began. “As part of our commitment to building a sustainable future for children, we have committed to making our products from more sustainable materials. The project will give us our third sustainable material we’ve developed alongside bio-PE and prototype bricks made from recycled PET.”
The new methodology is being integrated into existing manufacturing processes, which means it’s part of a production pipeline that still uses non-renewable fossil fuels to produce plastic. The LEGO Group states that the e-methanol alternative will allow the company to begin scaling back on non-renewable fossil fuel use, though there are currently no set targets announced for the percentage of plastics that will be made using e-methanol.
More sustainably sourced materials only constitute 4% of the plastic that the LEGO Group produces. Bioplastics have been used for foliage elements for a number of years. They use organic waste and sugarcane to create the material that’s used for many of the actual botanical and plant elements within the parts catalogue. It was one of the first steps towards using more sustainable materials in the manufacture of LEGO products.
The e-methanol is produced at European Energy’s special facilities in Kassø, Denmark using renewable energy from wind and solar plants with CO2 emissions.
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