Horizon Europe project EcoReFibre explores smart sorting and processing technologies to recycle post-consumer waste wood back into fibreboards and into novel building products.

EcoReFibre develops smart sorting and processing technologies to recycle post-consumer fibreboard back into fibreboards and novel building products, closing the material loop and reducing dependence on virgin wood.

Download EcoReFibre Strategic Roadmap

Combining AI-enabled sorting and advanced fibre-recovery methods, EcoReFibre works with industry leaders through five pilot projects to demonstrate circularity at scale, aiming to replace up to 25% of virgin fibres in Europe’s fibreboard industry. This builds on the experience of the particleboard industry, where recycling rates can reach up to 100%.

To build a truly circular fibreboard industry, there is a major need to:

Develop and prove a range of commercially viable methods for recycling.

Direct the post-consumer waste streams back to the production sites.

Promote a sustainable use of natural resources.

Increase the industry’s resilience in the context of international raw material markets.

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Fibreboard recycling on an industrial scale

After years of research, fibreboard recycling is now being scaled up to full industrial level. EcoReFibre plays a key role in this transition by developing and demonstrating advanced fibre-recovery methods and AI-supported sorting for post-consumer fibreboard. The project also delivers the first interactive model of fibreboard waste volumes in Europe, predicting data from 1995 to 2050. Together, these innovations drive circularity and resource efficiency across the wood-based panels industry.

Follow the Journey!

EcoReFibre promotes a circular economy by turning wood waste into fibreboards and innovative building products, uniting key actors across the European fibreboard value chain.

ESTIMATING POST-CONSUMER FIBREBOARD WASTE GENERATION IN EUROPE

July 7, 2026News

Following the publication of the Guide to the EcoReFibre Results in Brief and Factsheets, stage one focuses on prediction modelling.Led by ESB, it opens the series on estimating post-consumer fibreboard waste in Europe. It addresses a key challenge: understanding when fibreboards become waste and available for recycling.Today, limited information is available on the lifespan of...

Guide to the EcoReFibre Results in Brief and Factsheets

June 30, 2026News

EcoReFibre is pleased to share a series of Results in Brief and Project Innovation Factsheets presenting the project’s main achievements in a concise and informative way. Led by the responsible project partners together with InnovaWood, these publications highlight key results and innovations from the project demonstrations. The documents cover the main steps of the EcoReFibre...

EcoReFibre Animation – Closing the Loop on Post-Consumer Fibreboards

April 7, 2026News

Recycling post-consumer fibreboards and wood waste into new fibreboards has only recently become feasible. Recovering fibres from post-consumer furniture, building materials, insulation, flooring, and packaging is challenging and requires accounting for coatings, glues, additives and resins. Adding to this, in the current linear market system wood waste collection is not always efficient and valuable materials...