Issue 04/2016

Toys
LEGO looks for
sustainable alternatives
In 1958, in Billund Denmark, Godtfred Kirk Kristiansen
invented a simple system for clicking together small bricks,
enabling decades of imaginative play for young and old in
more than 140 countries. LEGO ® bricks make a positive
impact through creative play, but, the Lego Group wants to do
more; They also want to leave a positive impact on the planet
our children will inherit. [1]
That is why Lego is seeking for solutions to use sustainable
materials for all core products and packaging by 2030. The
Danish company is investing about EUR 135 million to make
this ambitious challenge a reality.
About a year ago Jørgen Vig Knudstorp, CEO and President
of the Lego Group, said “We have already taken important steps
to reduce our carbon footprint and leave a positive impact on
the planet by reducing the packaging size, by introducing FSC
certified packaging and through our investment in an offshore
wind farm. Now we are accelerating our focus on materials.” [2]
The investment includes the establishment of a Lego
Sustainable Materials Centre at the Group’s headquarters in
Billund, Denmark. In order to achieve the challenging goal “to
find alternative materials”, the Lego Group announced to hire
more than 100 specialists within the materials field during the
coming years.
Kjeld Kirk Kristiansen (Lego-group owner) said “Our
mission is to inspire and develop the builders of tomorrow.
We believe that our main contribution to this is through
the creative play experiences we provide to children. The
investment announced is a testament to our continued
ambition to leave a positive impact on the planet, which future
generations will inherit. It is certainly in line with the mission
of the Lego Group and in line with the motto of my grandfather
and founder of the Lego Group, Ole Kirk Kristiansen: Only the
best is good enough”.
With about 77,000 tonnes of petroleum-based plastics to
make 60 billion bricks and other pieces for its sets in 2014
[3], finding new, innovative and more sustainable materials to
make these parts would significantly reduce the Lego Group’s
impact on the planet [1, 2].
Photo: Courtesy LEGO A/S
To achieve these goals, Lego is working with suppliers,
universities and partners such as World Wildlife Fund to
research, develop and implement sustainable raw materials
for Lego products and packaging [1]. An example is the new
collaboration with WWF that was agreed in spring 2015 and
focuses on better assessing the overall sustainability and
environmental impact of new bio-based materials for Lego
elements and packaging [2].
Erin Simon, Deputy Director, Sustainability R&D at World
Wildlife Fund said “WWF is excited to work with the Lego
Group to help meet our shared conservation challenges. By
sourcing materials responsibly, we’re also helping to protect
the ecosystems that we all rely on. We’re excited to help the
Lego Group on its journey to source all of their materials
responsibly.” [1]
However, according to Tim Guy Brooks, Vice President
Environmental Sustainability at Lego, “it is vital that any new
materials introduced must meet our current quality, safety
and play standards. The solution may not be one size fits all.
We’re considering a mix of solutions that may include the use
of plant-based plastics…” [1].
In a Wall Street Journal report [3] Brooks said they won’t
rule out any possibilities in their search for alternatives, but
Lego prefers that their new plastic be derived from waste
materials, such as corn stalk or other agricultural waste “that
doesn’t appear to serve any other purpose.” [3]
Besides all environmental aspects, quality and functionality
is really a challenge. Each Lego piece, whether basic blocks
or the swiveling parts of figurines or technical components
such as excavator shovels, must interlock with other pieces
with unchanging precision [3]. “Making Legos is incredibly
precise,” as Tim Guy Brooks pointed out, “we mold it to about
four-thousandths of a millimeter,” The currently used ABS is
“very durable, holds color really well…it even has a particular
sound.” [3].
During Natureworks’ Innovation Takes Root conference in
2015, Allan Rasmussen (then Plastic & Innovation Manager
at Lego) told bioplastics MAGAZINE, that the force to hold Lego
bricks together must be big enough that they don’t fall apart
by themselves. On the other hand, this force must be small
enough for 2 – 3 year old kids to take them apart when they
want to.
Finding alternative materials, for example biobased
plastics “is the right thing to do for Lego—fossil fuels are a
finite resource and we know that,” Tim Guy Brooks said [3]. MT
www.lego.com
[1] Brooks, T.G.: Building up to sustainability: Lego Group’s journey, blog-post
at http://www.worldwildlife.org/blogs/on-balance/posts/building-up-tosustainability-Lego-group-s-journey
(27 April 2016)
[2] Trangbæk R.R.: Lego Group to invest 1 billion dkk boosting search for
sustainable materials (http://www.lego.com/en-us/aboutus/newsroom/2015/june/sustainable-materials-centre)
[3] Chao, L.: Lego Tries to Build a Better Brick, http://www.wsj.com/articles/
Lego-tries-to-build-a-better-brick-1436734774 (July 2015)
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