Impact, risk and opportunity management
ESRS 2 IRO-1 – Description of the processes to identify and assess material resource use and circular economy-related impacts, risks and opportunities
The general methodology for identifying impacts, risks and opportunities is described under ↗ ESRS 2 General disclosures – Description of the processes to identify and assess material impacts, risks and opportunities.
E5-1 – Policies related to resource use and circular economy
The Lufthansa Group regards the R-strategies that systematically prioritise efforts to reduce, reuse, recycle, recover and replace materials as the model for its resource use and circular economy activities. These are introduced by the individual business segments in various ways.
Lufthansa Group Passenger Airlines approaches to resource use and circular economy
Based on the R-strategies and the EU’s waste hierarchy (2008/98/EC), the Lufthansa Group Passenger Airlines segment has introduced specific guidelines under the framework of its global waste policies with the aim of promoting the shift away from the use of primary resources and towards renewable, recycled or recyclable materials. In respect of single-use plastic packaging in particular, the airlines are increasingly using materials from renewable and recyclable resources for items such as single-use cutlery and headphone and blanket packaging. Steps are being taken to ensure that products that are made from a single material and can be recycled are used where possible going forward. Lufthansa Airlines, SWISS, Austrian Airlines and Air Dolomiti are also revising their tenders to state that they only intend to source materials that do not contain any single-use plastic or single-use aluminium, that are renewable or recyclable and that comply with regulations such as the EU’s Packaging and Packaging Waste Directive (PPWR) and Deforestation Initiative. Some of the airlines are also ensuring that single-use plastic packaging is sent directly for recycling. For example, SWISS introduced recycling of composite packaging made of cardboard and plastic in the reporting year.
The Lufthansa Group’s waste targets policy relates to single-use waste, food waste and reusable waste in the Lufthansa Group Passenger Airlines segment and the lounges that come under this. Its aim is to end the use of single-use plastic and single-use aluminium on board, to halve the amount of food wasted on short-haul routes by 2025 compared with the 2019 base year and to introduce circular principles in respect of reusable waste for more sustainable resource use.
The passenger airlines of the Lufthansa Group have jointly defined a framework for dealing responsibly with in-flight waste, covering every aspect of it. In-flight waste is divided into three categories: single-use waste, food waste and reusable waste. Single-use waste refers to materials that become waste after being used once in-flight or after a flight event, without any defined recycling processes. Food waste may arise both during and after flights. Reusable waste includes materials that are already part of a circular system, but later become waste without any downstream recycling processes.
In an effort to reduce resource consumption, Lufthansa Group Passenger Airlines are focusing on keeping finite resources within a closed loop for as long as possible. This includes endeavouring to return all in-flight plastic and aluminium items to the circular economy or dispense with them entirely in favour of renewable raw materials.
In the area of reusable waste and in respect of damaged but reusable materials, such as blankets, pillows, tablets and trays, Lufthansa Group’s Passenger Airlines are aiming to reducing waste by returning it to the resource cycle.
Measures are also being taken to minimise food waste while improving the level of data transparency regarding customer wishes and flight-specific eating patterns in collaboration with catering companies. The airlines in the Lufthansa Group are striving to improve data quality and optimise the management of food resources by fostering collaboration with the catering companies.
The Lufthansa Group Corporate Responsibility and product management departments are jointly responsible for management and coordination, conceptual work, target setting and monitoring at Group level in respect of in-flight waste. To ensure Group-wide integration, a working group made up of Lufthansa Group’s Passenger Airlines representatives has been established to regularly discuss the progress made and challenges faced and to draw up joint standards. Since 2023, the Lufthansa Group Passenger Airlines have implemented the R-strategies, as shown in the following examples:
- Reduce: services, such as providing headphones on request to reduce single-use plastic
- Reuse: use of reusable products, such as reusable cups
- Recycle: use and collection of certain plastics for recycling
- Recover: implementation of a process for transferring beverage residue to a biogas plant
- Replace: switch from plastic to paper packaging
Lufthansa Technik approaches to resource use and circular economy
Within its main business activity – the maintenance of aircraft and aircraft parts, such as components, engines and landing gear – Lufthansa Technik is guided by the requirements of original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), which set out in detail the permitted parts and repair procedures.
As a maintenance organisation, Lufthansa Technik is obliged to operate in compliance with the requirements of European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) Part-145 governing aircraft maintenance and other safety regulations. Lufthansa Technik is therefore not responsible for decisions on the use of recycled materials. In addition, the Company sources its materials and parts exclusively from certified suppliers that guarantee the required quality standards. Segment and site management are responsible for the implementation. Nevertheless, individual Lufthansa Technik sites do implement concepts aimed at increasing the recycling rate. As Lufthansa Technik sites differ in terms of size, activities and country-specific standards, It is up to each site to develop its own approaches and define measures to ensure Lufthansa Technik achieves its group-wide aim of increasing the recycling rate to 75%.
Lufthansa Technik has also been offering leasing-based repair services for years, whereby airlines in the Lufthansa Group and external airlines can have spare parts installed in their aircraft. The spare parts remain the property of Lufthansa Technik and may be used elsewhere as soon as an aircraft leaves the fleet. This ensures these parts are kept within the material cycle. The contractually agreed leasing models are intended to allow for more efficient use of spare parts. This model currently covers several thousand aircraft.
Lufthansa Technik also applies the circular economy R-strategies in a slightly different form in various processes within its repair and maintenance services. The leasing of spare parts and other replaceable aircraft components to airlines helps to keep inventories low and materials in economic circulation for longer. The use of parts from retired aircraft following maintenance and certification supports the principle of reuse. Materials such as steel from retired aircraft are also sent for recycling.
Lufthansa Cargo approaches to resource use and circular economy
Lufthansa Cargo pursues a circular economy concept aimed at avoiding and reducing the use of resources as well as conserving resources. This includes loading aids and equipment that are indispensable in the airfreight transport sector. These are mainly items designed for multiple use that only become waste once they are no longer repairable or reach their date of expiry according to international airfreight regulations. Some loading equipment is disposable by nature or on account of product-specific requirements.
For both material categories – reusable items such as straps, nets and boards and single-use items such as plastic film – Lufthansa Cargo has developed strategies for keeping items in economic circulation for longer. These are based on the following principles: increasing recycling rates by substituting materials, introducing closed-loop systems and conserving resources, increasing resource efficiency by reducing the materials used, maximising reusability within the framework of existing regulations and implementing upcycling projects with individual materials.
Lufthansa Cargo, too, therefore puts into practice the circular economy R-strategies in multiple processes within its Group-wide air transport services on the basis of the described approaches. One example is the reduced use of virgin resources, for instance through the introduction of plastic film with a higher share of recycled material. The plastic film used worldwide by the Company has a 10% share of recycled material. Since January 2023, the Company has also been using a new net to secure loads on smaller pallets. It is around ten kilogrammes lighter than the previously used nets. Given the successful introduction of this net for use with small pallets, the feasibility of using it with larger pallets as well will be examined in 2025. All containers, pallets, nets, boards and straps are also used until they reach their date of expiry or are no longer fit for use. Boards that may not or cannot be used any longer are utilised as an energy source at the Frankfurt site.
At Lufthansa Cargo, loading aids and equipment are continuously reviewed to determine the feasibility of replacing them with new materials offering improvements in respect of weight savings, durability, reparability and other circular aspects.
The primary aim of using lightweight containers made of fibre-reinforced composites instead of aluminium containers is to save on kerosene and, with that, reduce carbon emissions. Lufthansa Cargo and its subsidiaries are also committed to using loading aids for as long as possible. To this end, they focus on optimising the useful life of lightweight containers, taking into consideration International Air Transport Association (IATA) regulations as well as programmes for the construction and careful use of certified containers and pallets. There is a trade-off between the savings in kerosene achieved through the use of lightweight containers and the disposal of these containers at the end of their useful life. More nuanced analysis is needed for greater consideration of the circular economy in future decision-making processes as well. Therefore, Lufthansa Cargo and its subsidiaries recognise the efforts of IATA to conduct product life cycle assessments for lightweight containers together with the industry.
The principles set out here are implemented either through contractual agreements worldwide or internal initiatives, particularly at the largest cargo hubs in Frankfurt and Munich. These also involve various stakeholders such as manufacturers, suppliers, waste disposal companies and own employees. Furthermore, Lufthansa Cargo partners with local vocational and training centres. They are also active in the industry association IATA, which has established sustainable working groups, i.e. working groups dealing with the topic of circular economy, in which Lufthansa Cargo representatives engage with other industry players.
Lufthansa Cargo sets out circular economy requirements in its contracts with suppliers. In addition, there is a constant exchange of information between Lufthansa Cargo – particularly its subsidiary Jettainer GmbH, which is responsible for loading aid management services – and manufacturers with a view to trialling new materials and then using those instead of current materials if they prove more resource-efficient.
Lufthansa Cargo aims to ensure compliance with and implementation of the circular economy policy by examining the technical specifications for materials and by ensuring that suppliers adhere to its purchasing requirements. Experts in the Environmental Management and Corporate Responsibility, Logistics Procurement and Global Fulfilment Management departments are responsible for the circular economy policy.
More details on the circular economy policy are available on the Lufthansa Cargo website.
E5-2 – Actions and resources related to resource use and circular economy
Lufthansa Group Passenger Airlines take action based on the R-strategies
Lufthansa Group Passenger Airlines has defined various actions along the procurement process and operating processes during and after flights.
Replace: expedite the replacement of single-use materials
In the procurement process, the focus is on replacing single-use plastic and single-use aluminium. The Procurement department sources renewable and recyclable materials wherever possible.
In the reporting year, Lufthansa Airlines and Edelweiss Air successfully trialled replacing single-use aluminium trays with bagasse trays in Economy Class. Bagasse, a byproduct of sugarcane processing, is an environmentally-friendly alternative to aluminium in food service. Other opportunities for using this material will be explored in 2025.
Since June 2024, SWISS has been using paper rather than plastic packaging for cutlery in Economy Class. Austrian Airlines and Brussels Airlines have replaced their blanket packaging with paper sleeves, which Lufthansa Airlines and Discover Airlines are also already using. SWISS trialled the use of reusable cups rather than single-use plastic cups on various flight segments in the reporting year. It aims to introduce reusable cups across the board from 2025.
In the reporting year, Air Dolomiti replaced single-use plastic cutlery for crews with steel cutlery, which has reduced unsorted waste. Discover Airlines is now using trays and other items that enable it to serve meals on the meal tray without any single-use plastic or aluminium. Lufthansa Airlines has introduced new, higher-quality headphones in Economy Class intended to encourage customers to take them with them and re-use them, thereby reducing the number of headphones distributed. Austrian Airlines, SWISS and Brussels Airlines are now using paper rather than plastic packaging for their headphones.
Reduce: cut resource use and analyse waste streams
Various on-demand services were introduced in 2024. For example, amenity kit items are offered solely through service staff in SWISS First Class. Lufthansa Airlines only distributes headphones to customers that request them. In the area of catering, butter and salad dressings are provided to passengers as necessary on various flight segments and airlines. Austrian Airlines has reduced the load of milk, cream and bread (by 20% for milk, 30% for cream and 45% for bread) on long-haul flights. Brussels Airlines is using less packaging for dry ice refrigeration on short-haul flights as well as reusable packing boxes, which adds up to a significant saving in packaging materials. It has also been able to reduce the level of dry ice refrigeration on certain routes. SWISS and Brussels Airlines are now using paper sleeves rather than plastic for their menu cards. In the reporting year, Brussels Airlines began re-loading half-full wine bottles for the next rotation rather than discarding them. This is already established practice at SWISS.
In relation to post-flight operating processes, the focus is on analysing waste stream data to improve transparency. For example, Passenger Airlines analysed food consumption with a view to increasing resource efficiency – particularly in respect of food waste. With the Lufthansa Group’s mobile “Tray Tracker”, technology supported by artificial intelligence was developed to analyse food consumption on incoming flights. The level of food waste is also determined by categorising meal trays and detecting untouched meals. The aim is to facilitate loading decisions that reduce waste through data analysis, visualisation and pattern recognition.
Recyle: recycle materials
The Lufthansa Group has introduced airline-specific recycling policies for crews for application on all of its passenger airlines. SWISS launched several initiatives for recycling in-flight materials in the reporting year and is now able to recycle greater volumes of materials in the United States, for example. In addition to recycling packaging made from composite materials at its Zurich hub, SWISS has also expanded in-flight recycling of textiles to include First Class pyjamas. Eurowings conducted successful recycling trials at Dusseldorf Airport in collaboration with partners and the local cleaning company, resulting in 420 kilograms of recyclable materials being sent for recycling. In the reporting year, Austrian Airlines recycled 1,620 kilograms of textiles and introduced a new textile recycling process that is already in use at SWISS.
Lufthansa Technik puts an emphasis on recycling
The individual Lufthansa Technik sites not only pursue measures adapted to the specifics of their own locations but also Group-wide approaches for achieving the target of increasing the recycling rate to 75% by 2025. With this in mind and taking applicable regulations into consideration, recyclable metal materials such as steel from across the Group are sold specifically to specialised recycling companies. This helps to improve resource use and supports the achievement of the sustainability target of increasing the recycling rate, while also generating economic benefits through the sale of metal waste to recycling companies and reducing disposal costs.
Lufthansa Technik also actively recycles components from aircraft that are no longer in service – and puts these back into circulation as certified spare parts following maintenance.
Lufthansa Cargo is committed to conserving resources with regard to its cargo capacity
Measures taken by Lufthansa Cargo and its subsidiaries to conserve resources cover all cargo capacity on both cargo and passenger airlines of Lufthansa Airlines, Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines, Discover Airlines and SunExpress as well as onward ground transport by truck. Where service providers take care of cargo handling operations, compliance with requirements for the promotion of the circular economy is maintained through contractual agreements. Internal employees are involved in this, along with manufacturers, suppliers, handling partners and local institutions such as vocational and training centres.
Two new measures were introduced during the reporting year: a biodegradable film for securing loads is being trialled, and straps collected by Lufthansa Cargo and its subsidiaries are being sent back to the manufacturer, who then checks them and returns usable straps to Lufthansa Cargo and its subsidiaries. Straps that have expired or can no longer be used are passed on to sheltered workshops, where the materials are separated and recycled.