Recycled and renewable materials in LEGO® bricks
At the LEGO Group, we have an ambition to increase the recycled and renewable materials we use to make our bricks and elements by 2032, when we turn 100. We are doing this in two ways:
- Using recycled and renewable materials in our products to replace virgin fossil.
- Using the mass balance approach. This is where our suppliers mix virgin fossil and certified renewable sources to create the material that we buy to make LEGO bricks.
Our progress so far
In 2025, 52% of the materials we bought to make LEGO bricks and elements came from recycled and renewable sources. This is largely made possible by the mass balance approach. Our goal is that this number will keep increasing.
“Increasing recycled and renewable content isn’t an easy switch, especially for products that need to be safe for children and durable enough to be used for generations,” said Annette Stubbe, Chief Sustainability Officer at the LEGO Group. “Our dedicated team of colleagues are working hard to find more sustainable solutions, with this kind of change requiring commitment and collaboration well beyond our own industries. While responsibly scaling new materials takes time, I’m pleased with the progress we’re making.”
An ambitious mission
One of the challenges when sourcing new materials is to ensure they meet our high safety, quality, and durability requirements. We want LEGO bricks to be played with again and again, so bricks made today will always fit with those from yesterday and tomorrow.
This issue is complex, and we have tested over 600 recycled and renewable materials as we search for solutions.
Physical recycled and renewable content in LEGO bricks
We use materials such as kitchen worktop offcuts, sugarcane, or even captured carbon directly in some of our bricks and elements. These recycled and renewable materials are what we call physical content.
Tires
We’re using post-consumer waste such as used fishing nets and recycled machine oils to help make some of our tires. These new tires contain 34% recycled materials and we’re working hard to expand recycled content to more of our tire designs.
Transparent pieces
Over 900 of our transparent elements contain 20% recycled waste material* from the production of artificial marble kitchen worktops. These elements include Lightsabers™, windscreens, and windows, and appear in more than 85% of LEGO sets.
*excluding colorants
Soft and bendy pieces
We make some of our flexible parts like flowers, botanical elements, and minifigure accessories with 89% renewable material from Brazilian sugarcane. This material is in more than 200 different elements, which can be found in around half of our LEGO sets.
Hard and rigid pieces
We’re designing some of our robust, rigid LEGO elements – like our axles and connectors – to be made with e-methanol. The process of making this material uses cutting-edge technology to mix renewable energy and CO2 from bio-waste. Coming soon!
How we use mass balance in our materials
Mass balance is a way to increase the amount of renewable and recycled input in the materials we buy. Our suppliers mix virgin fossil with certified renewable sources, such as plant oils, on a large scale, to produce the material we purchase to make LEGO products. Because of the mixing process, we cannot guarantee a minimum level of renewable or recycled content in our products. However, we can claim an estimate of renewable content from the materials we buy.
The market for high-quality more sustainable plastic that lasts for decades is still emerging, and securing a reliable supply of these materials is a priority for us. This approach helps us to start the transition to using more renewable and recycled raw materials, but it’s not the end goal. We will continue joining forces with industry to develop solutions and drive demand for high-quality, certified, and traceable raw materials.
Our transition to recycled and renewable materials in numbers:
2018
The year we introduced our first renewable material into our products, Brazilian sugarcane.
50%
The share of LEGO sets that contains a bio-PE element, made with 89% renewable material from Brazilian sugarcane. We make more than 200 different elements with this material.
900
The amount of transparent elements containing at least 20% of recycled artificial worktop cut-offs.
52%
The share of materials purchased to make LEGO bricks and elements that come from recycled and renewable sources.
Over 600
The number of recycled and renewable materials the LEGO Group has tested in its search for more sustainable solutions.
