Waste: The commodity of the future
Maximising the value of your untapped resources
Waste is everywhere, and waste is constant. While waste is often viewed as a dilemma, at PA we see things differently. We see opportunity and value.
The World Bank estimates that $205 billion is spent each year on solid waste management alone. The volume of solid waste is expected to rise from 1.3 to 2.2 billion tonnes by 2025, representing an annual global cost of $375 billion. A vast amount of commercial and industrial waste is currently burnt or buried, and around 80 percent of materials that end up in landfill are recyclable. This is bad for business and bad for the planet. But the tide is turning.
Waste awareness is growing, driven by rising costs, consumer pressure, green investment, resource scarcity, and incoming regulations. Forward-looking organisations are rethinking linear processes and challenging embedded attitudes to waste, developing circular strategies that unlock economic, social, and environmental value.
Featuring inspiring stories from our clients and beyond, our in-depth exploration into successful waste-to-value strategies uncovers three core approaches: reduce, recycle, and repurpose.
Three core pillars
Across industries, three pillars provide the foundations for success. Reduce and recycle are key to sustainable and profitable evolution, but the true revolution comes with repurpose.
1. Reduce
Waste reduction is the quickest and best first step towards greater efficiency, lower costs, and improved sustainability. Reduction begins with the blueprint. When scaled to cover an entire product line, even minimal alterations to weight, size, materials, technologies, and processes can bring huge benefits.
2. Recycle
Recycling recovers waste as input for the same or aligned use cases. Think recyclable bottles, cardboard packaging, textiles, coffee cups, and e-waste, as well as recycled water and energy used in smarter production. Thinking differently about recycling will create new opportunities.
3. Repurpose
The biggest and often most unexpected opportunities come from repurposing waste into entirely new business opportunities, turning it into value – also known as valorization.
As disposal costs increase and technologies develop, organisations are evolving from traditional waste recycling approaches to new solutions that realise business value.”
Don’t waste the opportunity
Our clients are leading the charge in this critical space, building the culture and capabilities to move swiftly from linear to circular models. With our expert support, so can you.
By shifting their mindset, organisations can seize the opportunity to turn a disadvantage into an advantage, creating profit and regenerative value from what would otherwise be deemed as waste.”
Explore more
