Communicating accurately about recyclabilityRecyclabilityThe ability of a product or its constituent materials to be recovered, separated and treated so that they can be reintroduced into a new production cycle; recyclability does not guarantee that actual recycling will occur.
Discussing recyclability requires a distinction between what can be established from material properties and existing recovery routes, and what depends on the actual conditions under which a mould is handled at end of life.
MATISSART therefore chooses to communicate on the basis of technical, verifiable and documented evidence, specifying both the claims we can make and their limitations.
What we can state
✅ Established industrial recycling routes exist for the main metals used to manufacture our moulds.
✅ An end-of-life mould can be entrusted to specialists capable of preparing and sorting its different materials and directing them to appropriate recovery routes.
✅ Steel, aluminium, copper and certain copper alloys can therefore be recovered and reclaimed as secondary metallic raw materials, subject to the requirements of each recovery route.
What we do not claim
Responsible environmental communication also requires us to clarify the limits of the claims we can make.
MATISSART does not claim that a mould is “100% recyclable”, or that it is “environmentally friendly” simply because it is predominantly made of metal.
Recyclability depends on the mould’s design and composition, while actual material recoveryMaterial recoveryThe set of operations used to recover value from an end-of-life material, particularly through preparation, recycling or reintroduction into a new production cycle. depends on the conditions for collection, dismantling, sorting, preparation and treatment at end of life.
Our commitment is therefore to communicate about technical, verifiable and documented characteristics, without turning a material’s recyclability into an overarching environmental promise.
Metal recyclability supported by industry references
This subject is particularly well documented in the metals industry: alloy producers and European recycling federations publish detailed data on collection rates, existing recovery routes and the associated environmental benefits.
MATISSART draws on these references to present the actual recyclability of its moulds transparently and in context.
| Référence | What it demonstrates |
|---|---|
| Materion – Beryllium Metal Recycling and Reclamation | The world’s leading producer of CuBe alloys explicitly states that copper-beryllium scrap and components can be recycled by specialist producers and recyclers, provided that material streams are properly separated. |
| NGK Berylco – Recycling and Circular EconomyCircular economyA model aimed at keeping the value of products, equipment, materials and resources in use for as long as possible through durability, maintenance, repair, reuse and recycling. (2025) | NGK states that copper-beryllium production scrap can be directly recycled to produce new alloys, and that it also recycles scrap returned by its customers. It estimates that recycled materialRecycled materialMaterial obtained from the treatment of waste or end-of-life products and reintroduced as a raw material into a new production cycle. already accounts for 30 to 40% of its alloy production. |
| Wieland Group – Recycling Strategy (2025) | One of the world’s leading copper alloy producers has announced a target of 90% recycled content across its product range and operates specialist copper alloy recycling centres. |
| EuRIC / Filières européennes des métaux non ferreux | Copper alloys are recognised as recoverable materials within European non-ferrous metal recycling streams. |
What the industry says about each metal
Data from recognised sources within the metals industry provide a clearer understanding of the recyclability of the main metals used in our moulds and the recovery routes available for them.
Steel
Steel for Packaging Europe / Metal Packaging Europe (2024)
Steel packaging achieves a European recycling rate of over 80%, and steel can be recycled repeatedly without degradation of its properties.
Aluminium
Aluminium is fully recyclable, and recycling saves approximately 95% of the energy required for primary production.
Copper
EuRIC – European Recycling Industries Confederation
Approximately 70% of the copper contained in end-of-life products is recycled in Europe. Copper recycling reduces CO₂ emissions by approximately 65% compared with primary production.
Copper-beryllium alloys (CuBe)
The copper-beryllium alloys used in certain specialist moulds consist predominantly of copper. At end of life, they can be directed to specialist recovery routes that enable their constituent metals to be recovered and reclaimed.
CuBe is an alloy consisting mainly of:
- Copper: generally 97 to 99%;
- Beryllium: 0.2 to 2%;
- Cobalt or nickel may also be present, depending on the grade.
Global producers (Materion, NGK, Wieland and Mitsubishi Materials) state that CuBe production scrap, swarf, used components and offcuts are recyclable and recovered through specialist metallurgical recycling routes.
European non-ferrous metal recyclers (EuRIC, Aurubis, Wieland Recycling, Metallo Group and Boliden) accept CuBe alloys through dedicated streams that enable:
- Alloy identification;
- Separation of material streams;
- Copper recovery;
- The reintroduction of alloying elements into new metallurgical products.
From recyclable materials to a broader approach
Recyclability is one of the environmental levers available to MATISSART, but it does not, on its own, encompass our entire corporate social responsibility approach.
Extending mould service life, preserving constituent materials and supporting their recovery at end of life form part of a broader approach that also addresses climate, resource use, working conditions, health and safety, ethics, and relationships with our suppliers and partners.
These different issues need to be addressed in a structured way, monitored and assessed over time.
That is the role of our CSR approach: to move from individual actions to an overall perspective, establish priorities, and progressively measure the results achieved.
Having considered how to preserve the value of our materials, let us now look at how MATISSART measures its progress and manages all of its commitments.
