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Circular Economy Index: Germany is number one

Germany is currently outperforming other European countries in terms of sustainability goals, reveals Politico’s Circular Economy Index. The list is based on last available data from Eurostat and the European Parliament.

Germany holds an estimated 1260 patents that have to do with sustainable products, processes and services. This is a lot more than any other country in the top five. Runner-up France, for example, has only 542 patents. Besides, Germany recycles 65% of its materials, while sending about 30% to waste-to-energy plants, and around 5% to landfill.

The best and the worst

There are definitely frontrunners when looking at the best practices of the EU’s 28 nations. The top five includes; Germany, France, United Kingdom, Czech Republic and Italy. The worst performing nations are, unsurprisingly; Greece, Malta and Cyprus.

The Circular Economy Index takes into account seven key metrics, namely: annual municipal waste per person; municipal recycling rate; trade of recyclable raw materials; material reuse rate; investments in circular economy sectors; circular economy patents; and also annual food waste per person.

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