Volvo Vehicles desires all of the fashions it sells to be leather-free by 2030, a transfer which represents the most recent instance of how automakers wish to make their autos extra sustainable.
In an announcement Thursday, the Swedish agency additionally mentioned it wished 1 / 4 of the fabric utilized in its new automobiles to “encompass recycled and bio-based content material” by 2025.
One of many inside supplies it is going to look to make use of, known as Nordico, is made up of textiles derived from recycled supplies like polyethylene terephthalate bottles in addition to “materials from sustainable forests in Sweden and Finland, and corks recycled from the wine trade.”
Whereas it intends to scrap the usage of leather-based in its autos, the corporate mentioned it might “proceed to supply wool mix choices from suppliers which can be licensed to supply responsibly.”
In an announcement, Stuart Templar, Volvo Vehicles’ director of world sustainability, mentioned: “Discovering merchandise and supplies that help animal welfare shall be difficult, however that’s no motive to keep away from this vital concern.”
In March, Volvo Vehicles — which is headquartered in Sweden however owned by China’s Zhejiang Geely Holding Group — mentioned it deliberate to turn into a “absolutely electrical automobile firm” by the yr 2030.
“There isn’t any long-term future for automobiles with an inside combustion engine,” Henrik Inexperienced, Volvo Vehicles’ chief know-how officer, mentioned on the time. “We’re firmly dedicated to changing into an electric-only automobile maker and the transition ought to occur by 2030,” Inexperienced mentioned.
Quite a few automotive producers have introduced plans to package their autos out with supplies apart from leather-based. Again in 2019, Elon Musk’s Tesla mentioned the inside of its Mannequin 3 was “100% leather-free.”
Different examples embody Porsche — a model owned by the Volkswagen Group — providing prospects a leather-free choice for the inside of the Taycan, an all-electric sports activities automobile.
As issues about sustainability mount, firms from a variety of sectors are taking a look at new methods of packaging and delivering their merchandise in a bid to mitigate their environmental footprint.
In June, client items big Unilever mentioned a prototype of what it described as a “paper-based laundry detergent bottle” had been developed for its model OMO and can be launched to Brazil by early subsequent yr.
Earlier this month, on-line meals supply enterprise Simply Eat mentioned it might work with CLUBZERO to trial reusable packaging in London over a three-month interval.
In Feb. 2020, Simply Eat mentioned it had, along with packaging agency Notpla, developed a “absolutely recyclable” takeout field lined with seaweed.