EcoReFibre was proud to take part in Ecomondo 2025 at the Rimini Expo Centre, in two venues: a joint workshop on “Driving the Circular Transition in the EU: Recovering Value from Secondary Raw Materials” and a presentation delivered within a broader Circular Economy seminar, both held on Tuesday, 4 November. Ecomondo is a leading exhibition for green and circular economy in Europe, bringing together policymakers, industry, researchers, and innovators to showcase technologies, forge partnerships, and set the agenda for sustainable transition across sectors.
Co-organised by the International Solid Waste Association (ISWA), the workshop session featured contributions from five EU projects – Wood2Wood (transforming unused construction and furniture wood into new products), CIRCULess (upcycling mineral and timber-based waste with eco-design and digital tools), ReBoat (developing mobile circular solutions for sustainable tourism in EU islands), BIO4EEB (developing high-performance bio based insulation solutions), and EcoReFibre.
EcoReFibre presented its latest progress on recovering fibres from postconsumer wood and fibreboard waste and reintegrating them into new wood-based products. The workshop highlighted that medium-density fibreboard (MDF) is now demonstrably recyclable into new MDF. Industrial demonstration pilots showed that through sorting and defibration, recovering high-quality fibres from post-consumer wood is technically feasible, economically attractive and environmentally sound. Early product demonstrations indicate that panels manufactured with recycled fibres can meet established performance requirements, showing that recycled content can be integrated into wood-based panels without compromising quality.
The session also included a panel discussion with project representatives, who explored practical pathways to increase Europe’s access to quality secondary raw materials and accelerate the circular economy. Topics included quality standards, market uptake, policy enablers, and cross-sector collaboration. The transition to large-scale recycling will rely on a secure and consistent feedstock supply, making higher collection volumes and improved waste-stream purity essential. Stronger policy support and coordinated action among public authorities, recyclers, and municipal collection points will also be key to establishing a functioning market for secondary raw materials.
