Nutrients remain Nutrients : a viable Cradle to Cradle principle for bamboo products?

Abstract

Replacing abiotic materials with biotic materials becomes more needed in today’s polluted world than ever. At the same time, the concept of a circular economy becomes more prominent to manage these material flows. Bamboo is a great biotic replacement option for many abiotic materials, and the principle ‘Nutrients remain Nutrients’ of the Cradle to Cradle (C2C) approach is seen as one of the founding theories for the circular economy. Because of the lack of publications combining the C2C principle with bamboo, this research aims to investigate to what extent this particular principle can be seen as a viable option for Dutch and German bamboo product manufacturers.

To conduct the research, a qualitative approach was applied. In total, 11 semi-structured interviews were conducted with manufacturers from the industries of consumer items, construction and finishing materials, furniture, and textiles. The data provides valuable insights into current practices as well as possible challenges and needs with the principle.

The research findings reveal that the viability of the proposed cycles depends on the product composition and product design, the cost-benefit-ratio, the role of customers/consumers as well as the role of the manufacturer, suppliers and partnerships, the industry and market set up, and given infrastructures and technology on hand. Therefore, this research concludes that the principle is viable if the circumstances are right. However, the majority of the manufacturers is not able to adopt the principle in its entirety as it faces certain challenges. Despite finding similarities between industries, the great product range requires further investigation with a more specific focus on one particular industry or product.