Circular economy market
This is how we implement the Circular Economy Programme
Estimates for the value of the global market supporting the circular economy are in hundreds of billions of euros. The circular economy and technological advances offer opportunities for Europe to annually improve resource productivity by up to three per cent and increase GDP by about 0.5 per cent by 2030.
In Finland, the growing circular economy market will also build new and environmentally sustainable economic growth in the long term. The circular economy market can be promoted with a suitable combination of policy instruments, including product eco-design legislation, economic incentives, and cooperation between the authorities in circular economy projects. The circular economy market will grow faster once people discover the services and find them appealing.
What we do and where we are now:
1. We are active in developing legislation and product policy measures that support the circular economy in the EU.
- As part of the Green Deal of the European Commission, proposals of the EU’s circular economy action plan have been implemented that will enhance the sustainability of product policy, reduce the amount of waste and make it easier for consumers to act sustainably. The focus is on key sectors in terms of sustainability, such as electronics, batteries and vehicles, packaging, plastics, textiles, construction and buildings, and food, water and nutrients. Work has been done to influence the content and implementation of the Commission’s key initiatives in advance, and some of the proposals are still in their national implementation phase. Information on circular economy measures in the EU is also available on the website of the Ministry of the Environment Promoting a circular economy in the EU (in Finnish). Responsible organisations: Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment, Ministry of Justice and Ministry of the Environment.
2. We will develop cooperation between the authorities in circular economy projects.
- The Pirkanmaa Centre for Economic Development, Transport and the Environment organised a series of workshops for developing cooperation between the authorities in the autumn of 2021. Recommendations for developing cooperation between authorities in circular economy projects were published in February 2022. The recommendations focus on promoting networking, facilitating experimentation, better access to and sharing of information, and allocating more resources for foresight work and risk management. Responsible organisations: Ministry of the Environment and Pirkanmaa Centre for Economic Development, Transport and the Environment.
- Discussions are under way with representatives of the Economic Development Centres on the structures, operating models, expertise and support that are needed to promote a circular economy. Responsible organisation: Ministry of the Environment.
3. We will promote a stronger market for recycled materials.
- Challenges related to repairing different kinds of goods, opportunities to promote repairs and the environmental, employment and economic impacts of repairs have been explored and, based on this, recommendations for policy instruments have been prepared to promote the access to and appeal of repair services. Responsible organisation: Ministry of the Environment.
- Emission reductions in waste incineration and material recycling will be promoted as part of the Circular Economy Green Deal. Responsible organisation: Ministry of the Environment.
- The development of new products from recovered materials has been facilitated by the amendment to the Waste Act (in Finnish), which will enter into force in the beginning of 2027. In future industrial side streams can be classified as by-products and the classification of a substance or an object once classified as waste can be changed by the new classification procedure. Responsible organisation: Ministry of the Environment.
- The broad-based working group appointed in July 2024 to prepare the Circular Economy Act submitted its report on 10 February 2026. The working group proposes amendments that will strengthen the development of the markets and predictability of the environment for investments and shift the focus of the legislation to retaining usable products in the cycle and improving the quality of recycling. The preparation of the legislation continues in two stages. The amendments to the Waste Act to be issued in the first stage will improve the recycling the municipal waste, packaging waste and biowaste and the efficiency of the collection of electrical and electronic equipment. The Circular Economy Act that will replace the Waste Act will be drafted in the second stage during the next government term. Responsible organisation: Ministry of the Environment.
- The process to end the classification of mechanically recovered plastic as waste proceeds. The legislative drafting process can be followed at the project website of the Ministry of the Environment (in Finnish). The government decree issued in autumn 2022 (466/2022) put an end to the classification of crushed concrete as waste. Responsible organisation: Ministry of the Environment.
- Opportunities related to the obligations to use recovered materials or voluntary guidance for increasing the demand for recovered materials in new material and product groups have been explored (focus on plastics but nutrients, concrete and textiles were also included). Responsible organisation: Ministry of the Environment.
- A coordination group promoted the utilisation of models adopted for the circular economy in mining and extraction industry in 2022–2023. Responsible organisations: Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment and Lapland Centre for Economic Development, Transport and the Environment.
- The National Mineral Strategy of Finland was published on 19 December 2024. The strategy emphasises the role of the circular economy as a key component of the sustainability work.
4. We will help citizens find circular economy services and improve their appeal.
- We will promote the incorporation of a circular economy into consumer goods and services trade in cooperation with the Finnish Commerce Federation. In the Circular Economy in Consumer Trade project a playbook and policy recommendations were drawn up to promote a circular economy in the trade sector. Responsible organisations: Ministry of the Environment and Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment.
- We have promoted the wider introduction of repair services in cooperation with the Centre for Consumer Society Research of the University of Helsinki and Turku University of Applied Sciences. Responsible organisation: Ministry of the Environment.
- Together with the Intelligent Transportation Society – ITS Finland and cooperation partners, we drew up a manual for municipalities and cities to promote electric cars for shared use. Responsible organisation: Ministry of the Environment.