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Sustainability

Our Ambition

Collage with different Continental products and people

Our ambition is to become the most progressive tire manufacturer in terms of environmental and social responsibility 

Taking responsibility for our products, people and the environment is central to everything we do. We believe that tomorrow's mobility will be cleaner and more sustainable We are committed to driving this change.

Innovation is our greatest strength. We develop technologies and solutions aimed at lowering environmental impact along our entire value chain – from sourcing renewable and recycled materials to recycling end-of-life tires.

All materials used in our tires, whether conventional, renewable or recycled, undergo extensive testing to ensure safety, performance and efficiency.

Through all the progress we are making, one thing will never change: the safety of our products will always remain our top priority.

Responsibility Along our Entire Value Chain 

Design & Sourcing
Design & Sourcing
Operations
Operations
Product Use
Product Use
Post-Use
Post-Use

We use materials that are sourced according to responsible and certified standards.

When referring to renewable and recycled materials in our tire production, we align with the definitions established by the Tire Industry Project (TIP)

We are working toward low-carbon tire production and maximizing resource efficiency by:

• Increasing energy efficiency • Minimizing water consumption • Optimizing waste management Our production facilities strive to operate with lower emissions and improved resource efficiency. Since the end of 2020, we have sourced electricity exclusively from renewable energy sources. To achieve this, we use a combination of green electricity contracts, power purchase agreements, and other contractual instruments. For any volumes not covered by these agreements, we purchase energy attribute certificates that meet defined quality standards. This approach is implemented by our legal entities in close collaboration with central purchasing and environmental departments. Together, they ensure a holistic strategy and full coverage of externally purchased electricity through verified instruments.

Our tires deliver high performance, energy efficiency, and durability, while meeting the highest safety standards.

We focus on continuously improving service life, tire wear rate and rolling resistance – factors that are crucial to the exceptional quality of our tires.

End-of-life tires are a valuable resource.

By advancing technologies for material recovery and reuse, including mechanical recycling and pyrolysis, we are closing the loop in tire production.

Our Sustainability Ambitions

We continuously improve the sustainability of our products and processes in line with our global strategy.

Key Ambitions

  • Sourcing natural rubber responsibly
  • Increasing the share of renewable and recycled materials in our tires
  • Reducing our environmental impact on energy, water and waste
  • Recovering and recycling tire materials at end-of-life through advanced technologies
  • Achieving low-carbon tire production
  • Continuously improving the carbon footprint and sustainability of our supply chains

Definitions established by the Tire Industry Project (TIP)

  
DefinitionA renewable material is defined as a biobased material that returns to its previous stock levels by natural growth or replenishment processes at a rate in line with use cycles. Therefore, it is replenished/regrown at a rate equal to or faster than harvested/extracted.
Examples Continental Tiresnatural rubber from rubber trees or oils from plants

  
Definition

A recycled material is defined as a material that has been reprocessed from a recovered (or reclaimed) discarded material by means of a manufacturing process and made into a final product or a component for incorporation into a product. A distinction is made between post-consumer and pre-consumer recycled materials:

 

1. Post-consumer recycled material:
Material generated by households or by commercial, industrial and institutional facilities in their roles as end users of the product that is no longer used for its intended purpose. This includes returns of material from the distribution chain. (Aligns with: ISO 14021; SASB; UL 2809)

2. Pre-consumer (post-industrial) recycled material:
Material diverted from the waste stream during a manufacturing process. Excluded is reutilization of materials such as rework, regrind or scrap generated in a process and capable of being reclaimed within the same process that generated it. In the tire industry, a material qualifies as pre-consumer recycled if it meets the three conditions stated in Table 2. (Aligns with: ISO 14021; SASB; UL 2809)

 

The combined proportion of pre-consumer and post-consumer recycled material, by mass, in a product or packaging is defined as recycled content for the tire industry.

Examples Continental Tires

recycled steel, silica from the ashes of rice husks or polyester from recycled PET bottles

 

1 Resource derived from biomass excluding any materials embedded in geological formations or transformed to fossilized material. Examples include trees, crops, grasses, algae, microorganisms, animals and wastes of biological origin (E.g. manure). Source: ISO 59004:2024

2 Excluding energy recovery