HP Inc. released its 2018 Sustainable Impact Report, including its “bold” goal to increase recycled content plastics across its print and personal systems portfolio to 30 percent by 2025.
The report documents the progress HP is making and the business benefits of investing in the planet, people and communities. Sustainable Impact programmes drove more than $972 million (€867 million) of new revenue for HP in 2018, a 35 percent year-over-year increase.
“Companies have critically important roles to play in solving societal challenges, and we continue to reinvent HP to meet the needs of our changing world,” said Dion Weisler, President & Chief Executive Officer, HP Inc. “This isn’t a ‘nice to do,’ it’s a business imperative. Brands that lead with purpose and stand for more than the products they sell will create the most value for customers, shareholders and society as a whole. Together with our partners, we will build on our progress and find innovative new ways to turn the challenges of today into the opportunities of tomorrow.”
The OEM explained that its new recycled content plastics goal builds on the company’s long legacy of leadership in this area. In 2018, HP used 21,250 tonnes of recycled plastic in HP products, including more than 8,000 tonnes in its Personal Systems products (a 3.5 percent increase from 2017), more than 4,700 tonnes in its printing products (a 280 percent increase from 2017) and more than 8,000 tonnes in Original HP ink and toner cartridges.
“Progress requires us to rethink every aspect of our business to find new ways to make life better for everyone, everywhere,” said Nate Hurst, Chief Sustainable Impact Officer, HP. “We are making durable, premium products using recycled plastic as part of our efforts to transform our business to drive a more efficient, circular and low carbon economy. Even small advancements, scaled globally, can have a huge impact.”
As part of this commitment, HP continues to invest in and scale its impact sourcing initiative to prevent post-consumer plastic from entering our waterways and oceans. HP has already sourced approximately 700,000 pounds of ocean-bound plastic materials, or more than 25 million bottles, upcycling this material into HP cartridges and hardware.
This year, HP launched the EliteDisplay E273d, the world’s first display manufactured with ocean plastic. Together with its partners, including NextWave Plastics, HP is committed to scaling the use of ocean-bound plastics by developing the first global network of ocean-bound plastics supply chains, the OEM explained.
Detailing its commitment, HP Inc elaborated on how through the company’s partnership with Dr. Jenna Jambeck and Dr. Chris Cuomo from the University of Georgia, HP is sponsoring groundbreaking research on women’s crucial work in recycling and managing waste, specifically ocean-bound plastics. By focusing on the experiences of women working on the frontlines of plastic recycling, this research will serve as a basis for future projects and commitments involving informal waste collection, the development of ocean-bound plastic supply chains, and greater gender equality worldwide. This research is underway now and is scheduled to be released by early 2020.
The Sustainable Impact Report will be unveiled today at the MIT Solveathon at HP’s headquarters in Palo Alto.
Facilitated by the MIT Solve staff and supported by innovators, researchers and creative thinkers from HP, this event focuses on generating fresh ideas and refining solutions from the Bay Area community in response to Solve’s circular economy challenge, HP concluded.
David Connett, the outgoing ETIRA President said “It is good that they will increase the amount of recovered plastics, but they could do so much more if they increased the amount of ink in their cartridges. Doubling the amount of ink in a cartridge means you halve the number of cartridges you need to manufacture. That’s a better solution.”
