Furnishings: Ecomaison prepares the future of the re-use and recycling sector

Ecomaison has applied for renewal of its approval and published its new eco-participation scales to continue developing the furniture sector.

In 2012, before the creation of the furniture sector by Ecomaison (formerly Eco-mobilier), 55% of discarded furniture was landfilled. 10 years later, it's less than 3%.

Today :

Preparing the future for 2024-2029

To consolidate its results and pursue its development, Ecomaison announced that on June 30, 2023, it had submitted an application for renewal of its accreditation for the period 2024-2029 to the Ministries that signed its accreditation, and had decided to change its eco-tax scale for furnishings from January 1, 2024. Last May, Ecomaison's Board of Directors approved this change, which accompanies the implementation of new regulatory challenges arising from the AGEC law and strong ambitions in terms of developing outlets for recycled materials and eco-design.

Ecomaison's furniture industry budget will rise from €277 million in 2022 to €350 million in 2024.

An application for renewal of approval based on the need to transform and ensure the coherence of the operational plan as the construction and DIY sectors get off the ground.

After 10 years of existence and performance, the furniture chain developed by Ecomaison is now well established in the landscape of Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) chains.
Ecomaison's project is evolving with 3 complementary challenges:

• Strengthening proximity solutions for consumers and local anchoring of recycling sites,
• Simplifying the sorting process products and materials to increase the proportion of re-use and optimize collection for local authorities, distributors and associations.
• Improving recycling quality to enable manufacturers to increase the proportion of recycled materials in their products.

Ecomaison's strategy is based on a commitment to the major challenges of the AGEC law, and in particular to the development of prevention (through repair and reuse), the circularity of the economy and the creation of new sectors.

The development of a circular economy corresponds to a new industrial logic: resource management will integrate a growing share of secondary raw materials via recycling, and diversify the energy mix and industrial sectors with fuels derived from waste. Companies will also have to reduce their environmental impact by decarbonizing their production and seeking territorial synergies within the framework of inter-sectoral recycled material use loops.

This transformation is made all the more necessary by a global economic context under pressure, with a general rise in the cost of raw materials and energy.

Dominique Mignon, President of Ecomaison

Maintaining the industry's performance in an unprecedented economic context

This change is part of a tense economic context for companies, which combines price inflation for consumers and a decline in the furniture market of around 7% in 2022 in terms of unit sales volumes. This unfavorable context for Ecomaison in 2022 has led us to revise the 2024 eco-tax scale to make it possible to :

• Maintain service levels to local communities,
• Continue to promote innovation and encourage industrial investment in recycling and recovery,
• Support member companies in their regulatory response to the provisions of the AGEC law (take-back, reuse, information on environmental quality, etc.),
• Accelerate eco-modulation on products and services to promote environmental quality.

This change only applies to products in the furnishings sector - furniture, bedding and decorative textiles - one of the four sectors for which Ecomaison is accredited.

A collective dynamic based on trust with public authorities and balanced relations with stakeholders

Since its creation, Ecomaison has met and exceeded its collection and recycling targets, with 1.5 million tonnes of furniture and bedding waste collected by 2022 and 97% recycled (reuse, recycling, recovery). The eco-organization and its shareholders are committed to the development of an ambitious reuse and recycling sector in France, with over 6,720 collection points, 645 local authorities, over 600 manufacturers and 580 community-based players, all of whom provide local investment and jobs.

The relationships established with stakeholders over the 10 years of the furniture sector's existence have enabled us to build a collective dynamic with confidence and professionalism.