Understanding Our Material Circularity Index
At Alier, most of what we talk about is tangible. Tonnes of recycled paper. Cartons diverted from landfill. Pellets produced from waste that used to have nowhere to go.
This year, we measured something less visible, but just as important: how circular our operations actually are, expressed as a single number.
What the Material Circularity Index measures
The Material Circularity Index, or MCI, is a way of quantifying how much of what a company uses, produces, and sends out actually stays in circulation, instead of becoming waste.
The concept was originally developed by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation in 2015, as part of a European Life project. Ecomundis, an independent sustainability consultancy, later adapted the methodology for B2B manufacturing companies, expressing the result as a percentage of the total mass involved across the product life cycle. A score of 100% would mean a product or company is fully circular. A score of 0% would mean it is entirely linear, built on virgin material in, waste out.
Two ways of measuring the same company
Ecomundis calculated two separate indices for Alier, because a single number cannot capture the full picture of a business that sells intermediate products to other manufacturers.
The first is the ICM Local, sometimes called cradle to gate. This measures the circularity of what happens directly inside our own operations, from the raw material we bring into the product that leaves our gates. It reflects what we control.
The second is the ICM Global, from cradle to grave. This measures circularity across the entire life cycle, including what happens to our products after they reach the customer and continue through their own value chain. It is the index that comes closest to the original methodology proposed by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, and it depends on factors beyond our direct operations.
Our results for 2023
Based on data from our 2024 Non-Financial Information Statement, industrial waste records filed with the Catalan Waste Agency, and our own life cycle assessments, Ecomundis calculated the following results for Alier:
- ICM Local: 92.7%
- ICM Global: 64.1%
The local figure reflects the fact that nearly all of the raw material we use comes from recycled sources, and that most of the waste generated in our own processes is recovered rather than discarded. The global figure reflects the full life cycle of three of our products, carton wall, sacks, and paper bags, and accounts for what happens after the product leaves our hands.
We are choosing to share both figures, not only the higher one. A single number rarely tells the whole story, and we would rather show the full picture than the most flattering part of it.
Why this matters beyond the number itself
Measuring circularity is not only about generating a percentage. It is about identifying where the gaps are. The local index tells us we are doing the fundamentals right inside our own walls. The global index tells us there is still work to do once our products leave our hands, in areas that depend on collection systems, downstream users, and how the market handles end of life recovery.
This is consistent with something we have said before: the material is rarely the real obstacle to circularity. The system around it, collection, recovery infrastructure, and end of life logistics, usually is.
A methodology built on recognized standards
The calculation was carried out by Ecomundis, using their RightCircular methodology, which is aligned with ISO 59020 and ISO 59040, and with the Circular Transition Indicators developed by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development. It is also listed as a recommended toolkit on the European Circular Economy Stakeholder Platform, an official hub run by the European Commission.
What comes next
We plan to keep measuring this index going forward, and to keep sharing the results as they come, whether they improve, hold steady, or reveal new gaps to close.