December 15, 2025 15:41

The German Schwarz Group, operating in the food and retail sectors through Lidl and Kaufland and in the waste management field through PreZero, has reaffirmed its “Road to Zero Waste” commitment by announcing new recovery goals for 2030.

The updated objectives are particularly ambitious: Within the next five years, 95% of all waste generated internally by the companies of Schwarz Group is to be reused, recycled, composted or fermented. This represents a six-percentage-point increase over the 89% achieved in the 2024 fiscal year — a volume exceeding 3 million metric tons.

The group has also set new reporting standards, explicitly excluding thermal recovery with energy generation as a form of recycling. In addition, Lidl and Kaufland stores, along with PreZero’s central locations, will undergo independent certification according to the DIN SPEC 91436 standard — a benchmark for waste and recyclables management that allows for effective measurement of progress.

The Road to Zero Waste goals apply to all waste generated at retail outlets, logistics centers, administrative offices and production sites operated by Schwarz Produktion, the group’s food manufacturing subsidiary. Waste generated within proprietary recovery and disposal facilities, as well as construction waste, is excluded. 

To meet these targets, Schwarz Group will rely on its circular economy division, PreZero. With regard to plastics, PreZero Polymers currently processes 130,000 metric tons of post-consumer and industrial plastic waste per year, converting it into materials that can be reintegrated into the production cycle.

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