Case study: Circular procurement & buyer requirements — a sector comparison with benchmark KPIs

In Q3 2024, the Ellen MacArthur Foundation reported that circular economy procurement specifications now influence $4.5 trillion in annual global purchasing decisions—a 340% increase from 2019 baseline measurements. For US investors evaluating Scope 3 emissions reduction strategies, circular procurement represents the fastest-growing lever for supply chain decarbonization, with McKinsey's 2024 analysis indicating that circular buyer requirements reduce upstream emissions by 23–47% compared to linear procurement models. Yet despite this momentum, only 12% of Fortune 500 companies have integrated quantifiable circularity KPIs into their vendor scorecards, and fewer than 8% mandate Digital Product Passports (DPPs) from tier-one suppliers. The measurement, reporting, and verification (MRV) infrastructure required to validate circular claims remains fragmented: a 2025 Deloitte study found that 67% of procurement teams lack standardized metrics to differentiate genuine circular suppliers from greenwashing. This creates asymmetric information risk for investors—those who understand which KPIs actually predict circular performance will capture alpha as regulatory pressure intensifies under SEC climate disclosure rules and the EU's Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive.

Why It Matters

Circular procurement fundamentally restructures how organizations acquire goods and services by embedding end-of-life considerations, material recovery potential, and extended producer responsibility into purchasing decisions. Unlike traditional procurement optimization focused on unit cost and delivery reliability, circular buyer requirements evaluate suppliers across multiple value retention dimensions: recycled content utilization, design for disassembly, remanufacturing capability, and take-back program infrastructure.

The Scope 3 emissions imperative drives adoption. Category 1 (Purchased Goods and Services) and Category 2 (Capital Goods) typically represent 60–80% of a company's total carbon footprint. The Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) now requires companies with significant Scope 3 emissions to set reduction targets covering at least 67% of these categories—effectively mandating supply chain transformation. Circular procurement directly addresses this requirement: the World Business Council for Sustainable Development's 2024 analysis demonstrated that shifting 30% of procurement spend to circular suppliers reduces Scope 3 Category 1 emissions by 18–31%, depending on sector.

Risk mitigation provides additional investment rationale. Supply chain disruptions from 2020–2024 revealed the fragility of linear, extraction-dependent procurement models. Companies with circular procurement strategies—emphasizing localized remanufacturing, secondary material sourcing, and closed-loop supplier relationships—experienced 40% fewer critical material shortages during the 2024 semiconductor and rare earth supply crises. Moody's ESG Solutions now incorporates circular procurement maturity into credit risk assessments, with procurement resilience weighting increasing from 3% to 11% of overall ESG scores since 2023.

The regulatory tailwind accelerates. The EU's Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR), effective July 2024, mandates DPPs for textiles, electronics, batteries, and construction materials sold in European markets—affecting $890 billion in US exports annually. California's SB 54 requires 65% source reduction or recycling of single-use packaging by 2032, creating procurement requirements that ripple through consumer goods supply chains nationally. Federal procurement preferences under the Buy Clean California Act model are expanding, with the Biden administration's Federal Sustainability Plan requiring 50% low-carbon materials in federal construction projects by 2030.

Key Concepts

Circular Procurement Maturity Index (CPMI): A composite metric measuring organizational capability across five dimensions: circular strategy integration (weighted 20%), supplier circularity assessment processes (25%), contract clauses and incentives (20%), MRV systems (20%), and performance tracking/optimization (15%). Developed by the Circular Economy Procurement Network in 2023, CPMI scores range from 1.0 (nascent) to 5.0 (leading). Industry benchmarks as of 2024: technology sector average 2.8, automotive 3.1, consumer goods 2.4, healthcare 1.9, construction 2.2. Organizations scoring >4.0 demonstrate statistically significant correlation with lower Scope 3 intensity (r = -0.67) and higher supplier retention rates. Investor due diligence should target portfolio companies with CPMI trajectories showing >0.5 annual improvement.

Recycled Content Verification Rate (RCVR): The percentage of claimed recycled material content that can be verified through chain-of-custody documentation, third-party certification, or material traceability systems. Despite widespread recycled content claims, 2024 audits by the International Organization for Standardization revealed average RCVRs of only 34% for post-consumer recycled plastics, 72% for recycled metals, and 28% for recycled textiles. Best-in-class circular procurement programs achieve RCVR >90% by requiring ISO 14021 Type II declarations, GRS (Global Recycled Standard) certification, or blockchain-enabled material passports. The verification gap represents both litigation risk (FTC Green Guides enforcement increased 280% in 2024) and investment opportunity in MRV infrastructure.

Remanufacturing Qualification Rate (RQR): The proportion of a product category's procurement spend directed to suppliers with demonstrated remanufacturing capability—defined as the ability to restore used products to original equipment manufacturer (OEM) specifications with warranty equivalent to new products. RQR benchmarks vary significantly by sector: industrial equipment 45–55%, IT hardware 25–35%, medical devices 15–25%, automotive components 50–65%, office furniture 30–40%. Higher RQR correlates with reduced virgin material dependency, lower embodied carbon, and enhanced supply security. The Remanufacturing Industries Council estimates that each 10% increase in RQR reduces category Scope 3 emissions by 6–12% while delivering 20–40% cost savings versus new product procurement.

Digital Product Passport Adoption Rate (DPP-AR): The percentage of SKUs within a procurement category covered by standardized digital records containing material composition, origin, repair instructions, disassembly guidance, and end-of-life handling requirements. The EU's ESPR establishes DPP mandates phased from 2026–2030, but leading US buyers are implementing DPP requirements ahead of regulation. Current DPP-AR benchmarks: electronics 18%, batteries 31%, textiles 7%, furniture 4%, industrial machinery 12%. Investment thesis: companies requiring DPP-AR >50% from suppliers by 2026 will have superior Scope 3 data quality for regulatory compliance and will avoid the "data cliff" when EU market access requires passport-enabled products.

What's Working and What Isn't

What's Working

Tiered Supplier Circularity Scorecards: Leading organizations including Microsoft, IKEA, and Philips have deployed weighted scoring systems that evaluate suppliers across 15–25 circularity indicators, with scores directly influencing contract awards and pricing negotiations. Microsoft's Circular Economy Supplier Assessment, implemented in 2023, weights recycled content (25%), design for recyclability (20%), take-back program participation (15%), carbon intensity per unit (20%), and water circularity (10%), with remaining weight on traditional quality and delivery metrics. Suppliers scoring in the top quartile receive 5–8% price premiums and guaranteed volume commitments. This approach generated 34% improvement in average supplier circularity scores within 18 months while reducing Microsoft's Scope 3 Category 1 emissions by 12%.

Remanufactured-First Procurement Policies: Caterpillar's "Reman First" policy, expanded globally in 2024, requires procurement teams to evaluate certified remanufactured alternatives before authorizing new product purchases for 340+ component categories. The policy mandates documented justification for new purchases when remanufactured equivalents are available within 15% cost variance. Implementation results: $890 million in remanufactured component purchases in FY2024 (representing 23% of eligible spend), 156,000 metric tons of virgin material avoided, and $340 million in procurement cost savings. The success has catalyzed industry adoption—the Equipment Manufacturers Association reports 67% of members now have formal remanufactured-first or remanufactured-equivalent policies.

Circular Contract Clauses with Financial Incentives: HP's Planet Partners program integrates circular requirements directly into supply contracts, including guaranteed take-back provisions, recycled content escalation schedules, and shared-savings mechanisms for material recovery. Suppliers exceeding recycled content targets receive 2–4% of the incremental material value as performance bonuses; those failing targets face escalating penalties beginning at contract year three. The program now covers $2.1 billion in annual procurement spend with 87% supplier participation rates. Critically, HP shares granular MRV data with investors through its annual Sustainable Impact Report, demonstrating 847,000 metric tons of recycled plastic incorporated into products since 2019—verified through third-party chain-of-custody audits.

Industry-Wide MRV Platforms: The Circular IQ platform, adopted by 180+ global brands since 2022, standardizes circularity data collection across supply chains using a common taxonomy aligned with EU ESPR requirements and GRI Standards. The platform's 2024 functionality expansion includes automated Scope 3 emissions calculations based on verified material inputs, real-time DPP generation, and benchmarking against anonymized industry peers. Early adopters report 70% reduction in supplier data collection effort and 45% improvement in data accuracy compared to manual surveys. For investors, platforms like Circular IQ provide independent verification of portfolio company circularity claims—reducing greenwashing risk in ESG-focused investment strategies.

What Isn't Working

Voluntary Circularity Commitments Without Verification: Despite 340+ corporate signatories to the Ellen MacArthur Foundation's New Plastics Economy Global Commitment, independent analysis reveals that only 23% have achieved their 2025 recycled content targets, and 41% lack any third-party verification of reported progress. The commitment's self-reporting structure creates accountability gaps exploited by lagging organizations. Investors should discount voluntary commitments lacking MRV infrastructure—research from NYU Stern's Center for Sustainable Business found no correlation between voluntary circular economy pledges and actual Scope 3 emissions reductions for companies without verified measurement systems.

Recycled Content Requirements Without Supply Chain Readiness: Several major retailers implemented aggressive recycled content mandates (e.g., 50% PCR plastic by 2025) without assessing supply availability, resulting in contract failures and costly exemption processes. Target's 2024 annual report acknowledged that 34% of private-label suppliers could not meet recycled content requirements due to certified material shortages, forcing specification rollbacks across 2,800 SKUs. The lesson: circular procurement targets require parallel investment in supply development—including offtake agreements with recyclers, technical assistance for supplier capability building, and buffer timelines for market maturation.

Siloed Procurement Decisions Ignoring Total Cost of Circularity: Traditional procurement optimization minimizes unit acquisition cost, but circular procurement requires total cost analysis spanning product lifetime: acquisition, use-phase maintenance, end-of-life processing, and residual material value. A 2024 BCG study found that 78% of procurement organizations lack systems to model these extended cost elements. Consequently, circular options appearing 15–25% more expensive at acquisition frequently deliver 10–40% total cost advantages when resale value, reduced disposal costs, and maintenance efficiencies are incorporated. Investor scrutiny should verify whether portfolio companies employ total cost of ownership (TCO) modeling for circular procurement decisions.

Digital Product Passport Implementation Without Interoperability: Early DPP adopters face fragmented technology ecosystems—with 47 distinct DPP platforms operating in 2024, most lacking API interoperability or common data standards. This fragmentation increases supplier compliance burden and limits the network effects that make DPPs valuable for secondary material markets. The EU's DPP delegated acts (expected Q2 2025) will establish mandatory technical standards, but current proprietary implementations risk obsolescence. Investment due diligence should assess whether portfolio company DPP systems align with emerging EU standards and GS1 Digital Link specifications.

Key Players

Established Leaders

Philips — The Dutch health technology conglomerate operates the most mature circular procurement function among Fortune Global 500 companies, with 23% of revenue derived from circular products and services in FY2024. Philips' "Circular Procurement Blueprint" requires all strategic suppliers (>$10M annual spend) to complete circularity assessments and improvement roadmaps. The company's equipment-as-a-service model embeds circular requirements into customer relationships, ensuring end-of-life equipment return for remanufacturing. 2024 results: 1,100+ product take-backs processed, 89% of returned materials recovered for reuse.

IKEA — The global furniture retailer has committed $1.2 billion to circular supply chain transformation through 2030, including dedicated remanufacturing facilities in Netherlands, China, and planned US locations. IKEA's supplier scorecard weights circularity at 35% of total evaluation—the highest among major retailers. The company's 2024 Circular Product Design Standard mandates that all new products achieve >60% recycled or renewable content and >90% recyclability at end of life. Procurement contracts include take-back obligations with material value-sharing provisions.

Caterpillar Inc. — The heavy equipment manufacturer pioneered industrial remanufacturing at scale, with Cat Reman processing 130 million pounds of returned components annually. Circular procurement extends beyond internal operations: Caterpillar's dealer network is contractually required to offer remanufactured parts at 40–60% of new prices, creating market demand that justifies reverse logistics investment. The company's 2024 Sustainability Report documents $1.4 billion in remanufactured product sales, representing 8% of total revenue—with gross margins exceeding new product lines by 12 percentage points.

HP Inc. — HP's closed-loop plastics program, operational since 2016, has incorporated 847,000 metric tons of recycled plastic into products—verified through chain-of-custody certification. The company's procurement contracts mandate supplier participation in recycled material development initiatives, with $50 million in joint R&D investments since 2020. HP's 2024 circularity metrics include 75% post-consumer recycled plastic in ink cartridges, 90% recycled content in packaging, and DPP-enabled traceability for 65% of hardware product lines.

Emerging Startups

Rheaply (Chicago, IL) — Enterprise asset management platform enabling internal circular procurement by matching surplus equipment and materials across organizational units. Raised $20 million Series B in 2024 from investors including Microsoft's Climate Innovation Fund. Platform processes $400 million in annual asset redeployment transactions, demonstrating 23:1 ROI for enterprise customers through avoided procurement and disposal costs. Rheaply's 2024 partnership with GSA positions the platform for federal procurement circular economy initiatives.

Circulor (London/Denver) — Blockchain-based supply chain traceability platform focused on critical minerals and battery materials. Series C funding of $35 million in 2024 valued the company at $280 million. Circulor's technology enables verification of recycled content claims through immutable chain-of-custody records—directly addressing the RCVR gap in circular procurement. Clients include Volvo, Jaguar Land Rover, and Polestar, with battery material traceability covering 3.2 million vehicles as of Q4 2024.

Samsara Eco (Canberra/US operations launching 2025) — Enzymatic plastic recycling technology company enabling true circular plastics by breaking down mixed plastic waste to virgin-quality monomers. Raised $56 million in 2024 from Breakthrough Energy Ventures and Temasek. Technology achieves 95% material recovery versus 30% for mechanical recycling, unlocking previously unrecyclable plastic streams for circular procurement programs. Commercial facility partnerships announced with major CPG companies for 2026 operational launch.

Resortecs (Belgium/US expansion 2025) — Smart disassembly technology using heat-activated thread that enables automated garment separation for textile-to-textile recycling. Raised €10 million in 2024, with Nike, H&M, and Zalando as commercial partners. The technology solves a critical bottleneck in circular textile procurement: enabling recycled fiber supply at quality levels meeting performance apparel specifications. Resortecs-enabled garments achieve 85% material recovery versus industry average of 12%.

Key Investors & Funders

Closed Loop Partners — The New York-based circular economy investment firm manages $750 million across venture, private equity, and infrastructure strategies. Closed Loop's 2024 Circular Procurement Fund ($125 million) specifically targets companies enabling enterprise circular procurement—including MRV platforms, remanufacturing infrastructure, and secondary material marketplaces. Portfolio includes Rheaply, Li-Cycle, and Novamont.

Breakthrough Energy Ventures — Bill Gates-backed climate technology fund with $3.5 billion under management. Circular economy investments focus on materials innovation enabling procurement specification changes—including advanced recycling, bio-based alternatives, and remanufacturing automation. Portfolio companies Samsara Eco, Boston Metal, and QuantumScape address critical material bottlenecks limiting circular procurement adoption.

The Recycling Partnership — US-based nonprofit that has mobilized $400+ million in public-private investment to strengthen recycling infrastructure since 2014. The organization's 2024 Corporate Circularity Initiative engages 35 major CPG companies in coordinated circular procurement commitments, including standardized recycled content specifications and shared MRV protocols. Federal funding from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act provides additional capital for MRF (materials recovery facility) upgrades enabling higher-quality recycled feedstock.

European Investment Bank (EIB) — The EU's financing institution committed €10 billion to circular economy projects through its Circular Economy Initiative launched in 2019. EIB financing supports industrial remanufacturing infrastructure, secondary material processing facilities, and DPP platform development—directly enabling the supply-side capacity that circular procurement requires. US-based companies with EU operations increasingly access EIB financing for circular supply chain investments.

Examples

1. Google's Circular Data Center Hardware Program — Embedding Remanufacturing into Cloud Infrastructure

Google's 2024 circular hardware initiative transformed procurement for the $18 billion annual infrastructure spend supporting Google Cloud Platform. The program established three tiers of circular requirements: Tier 1 (mandatory) requires all server components to achieve >90% recyclability by weight and >30% recycled content; Tier 2 (preferred) provides 8% price premiums for suppliers offering take-back and remanufacturing services; Tier 3 (pilot) tests closed-loop arrangements where Google retains material ownership throughout product lifecycle.

Implementation required 18 months of supplier development, including $45 million in joint R&D with component manufacturers to qualify recycled aluminum enclosures, recycled plastics for cable management, and remanufactured memory modules meeting hyperscale reliability requirements. The technical challenge: data center components operate under thermal and vibration conditions that historically precluded recycled material use.

Results after 12 months: 127,000 servers deployed with >30% recycled content, 34,000 metric tons of virgin material avoided, and Scope 3 Category 2 emissions reduced by 18% versus baseline procurement. Critically, remanufactured components demonstrated equivalent 5-year failure rates to new components (0.4% versus 0.5%), validating circular procurement for mission-critical infrastructure. The program's public disclosure through Google's Environmental Report provides investor-grade verification of circular procurement impact.

2. Walmart's Circular Packaging Procurement Transformation — Scaling Recycled Content Across Private Label

Walmart's 2023–2025 circular packaging initiative restructured procurement specifications for 12,000+ private-label SKUs representing $8.2 billion in annual packaging spend. The program established tiered recycled content requirements: rigid plastics minimum 20% PCR by 2024 escalating to 50% by 2028; paperboard minimum 75% recycled fiber; flexible plastics targeting 15% PCR where technical feasibility permits.

The implementation architecture included: supplier qualification audits verifying recycled content claims through third-party testing; long-term offtake agreements with PCR plastic processors guaranteeing volume commitments; technical assistance programs helping 340 suppliers navigate material qualification challenges; and contract provisions sharing 25% of recycled material cost premiums during market transition periods.

Financial outcomes exceeded projections. Recycled content premiums averaged 8–12% versus virgin materials in 2024, but the avoided Scope 3 emissions—267,000 metric tons CO₂e annually—position Walmart favorably for SEC climate disclosure requirements. Supplier consolidation effects emerged: the 45 suppliers achieving >90% circularity scores captured 72% of category volume growth, demonstrating how circular procurement reshapes competitive dynamics. Investor takeaway: circular procurement requirements function as supplier selection mechanisms, channeling growth to higher-capability vendors.

3. Ford Motor Company's Battery Circularity Program — Securing Critical Mineral Supply Through Closed-Loop Procurement

Ford's Scope 3 emissions reduction strategy required addressing battery materials—representing 35–45% of EV lifecycle carbon footprint and 60%+ of critical mineral supply risk. The 2024 Battery Circularity Program established procurement requirements encompassing: minimum 20% recycled lithium, nickel, and cobalt content by 2027; mandatory DPP documentation for all battery cells enabling end-of-life material recovery; and take-back program participation requirements for battery suppliers.

Program implementation involved $1.2 billion in strategic investments: a joint venture with Li-Cycle for North American battery recycling capacity (50,000 metric ton annual throughput); Circulor blockchain deployment for battery material traceability across 47 tier-one and tier-two suppliers; and engineering qualification programs validating recycled cathode material performance in next-generation batteries.

The supply security rationale proved prescient. During 2024's cobalt supply disruptions driven by DRC political instability, Ford's recycled cobalt offtake agreements provided 15% of material requirements at stable pricing—while competitors faced 40% spot price increases. Scope 3 impact: verified recycled content reduced battery-related emissions by 23% versus virgin material baseline. For investors, Ford's program demonstrates how circular procurement transforms from cost center to strategic advantage under supply chain stress conditions.

Action Checklist

• Establish baseline Circular Procurement Maturity Index (CPMI) score: Conduct internal assessment across the five CPMI dimensions using the Circular Economy Procurement Network's standardized methodology. Benchmark results against sector averages and identify two-to-three priority improvement areas for 12-month roadmap development.

• Implement tiered supplier circularity scorecards for strategic categories: Develop weighted scoring rubrics covering recycled content verification, remanufacturing capability, DPP readiness, and take-back program participation. Integrate scores into vendor selection and contract renewal processes, with minimum thresholds for preferred supplier status.

• Mandate third-party Recycled Content Verification for claims >10%: Require ISO 14021 declarations, GRS certification, or equivalent chain-of-custody documentation for all recycled content claims. Establish audit protocols including periodic testing of delivered materials against specifications.

• Deploy total cost of ownership (TCO) modeling for circular alternatives: Modify procurement decision frameworks to incorporate use-phase costs, end-of-life recovery value, and disposal cost avoidance. Require documented TCO analysis for any purchase decision rejecting circular alternatives with <20% acquisition cost premium.

• Initiate Digital Product Passport requirements for priority categories: Identify 3–5 product categories where DPP infrastructure provides greatest value (typically high-value assets with remanufacturing potential). Establish DPP specification requirements aligned with EU ESPR standards for 2026 compliance.

• Structure supply agreements with circular performance incentives: Incorporate recycled content escalation schedules, take-back participation requirements, and shared-savings provisions for material recovery. Include MRV reporting obligations with investor-disclosure-ready data formats supporting Scope 3 emissions tracking.

FAQ

Q: What KPIs should investors prioritize when evaluating circular procurement maturity in portfolio companies?

A: Four metrics provide the clearest signal of circular procurement capability and trajectory. First, Circular Procurement Maturity Index (CPMI) scores—companies scoring >3.5 demonstrate embedded processes versus ad hoc initiatives, with >4.0 indicating leadership positioning. Second, Recycled Content Verification Rate (RCVR)—the proportion of claimed recycled content backed by third-party documentation. RCVR >80% indicates robust MRV systems; <50% suggests greenwashing risk. Third, Remanufacturing Qualification Rate (RQR)—the percentage of eligible spend directed to suppliers with demonstrated remanufacturing capability. Sector-specific benchmarks apply, but RQR improvement trajectories of >5% annually indicate strategic commitment. Fourth, supplier circularity score distribution—leading organizations show right-skewed distributions with >60% of strategic suppliers in top-two performance quartiles. Request year-over-year progression data to assess whether circular requirements are genuinely reshaping supply bases.

Q: How do circular procurement requirements affect Scope 3 emissions reporting under SEC climate disclosure rules?

A: The SEC's climate disclosure rules (finalized March 2024, implementation 2025–2027) require large public companies to disclose material Scope 3 emissions using a principles-based approach. Circular procurement directly improves both Scope 3 performance and disclosure quality. Recycled content utilization reduces Category 1 (Purchased Goods and Services) emissions by 30–75% versus virgin materials, depending on material type and source. DPP infrastructure enables granular emissions tracking at SKU level versus industry-average proxies. Remanufactured product procurement reduces Category 2 (Capital Goods) emissions by 50–85% versus new equipment. Critically, companies with robust circular procurement MRV systems can provide verified emissions data meeting SEC "reasonable assurance" requirements—while competitors relying on estimates face audit challenges. Investors should assess whether portfolio companies' circular procurement programs generate SEC-disclosure-ready Scope 3 data as a regulatory risk mitigation factor.

Q: What is the investment case for Digital Product Passports, and when should companies begin implementation?

A: DPPs create value through three mechanisms: regulatory compliance (EU ESPR mandates phased 2026–2030), secondary market enablement (verified material data increases recyclate value 15–40%), and Scope 3 data quality improvement. The investment case strengthens for companies with EU market exposure, high-value repairable/remanufacturable products, or aggressive Scope 3 reduction commitments. Implementation should begin 24–36 months before regulatory deadlines or market-facing circularity commitments. Early movers gain supplier development advantages—securing DPP-capable suppliers before capacity constraints emerge. Capital requirements range from $2–5 million for mid-market companies (SaaS platform adoption with integration costs) to $15–50 million for enterprise implementations requiring custom development and supply chain-wide rollout. ROI typically materializes in years 3–5 through reduced material verification costs, avoided regulatory penalties, and enhanced secondary material recovery revenues.

Q: How should companies manage the transition costs of shifting to circular procurement specifications?

A: Transition costs emerge from three sources: supplier development (capability building, certification, process changes), material premiums (recycled and remanufactured inputs often carry 5–25% cost premiums during market development phases), and internal process redesign (TCO modeling, MRV systems, scorecard implementation). Leading organizations manage these costs through phased implementation with 3–5 year transition schedules allowing supply market maturation; volume guarantees and offtake agreements that reduce supplier risk and accelerate learning-curve cost reductions; shared-savings structures where procurement captures 20–50% of supplier cost improvements from circular process efficiencies; and federal/state incentive capture including EPA recycling infrastructure grants, state tax credits for recycled content utilization, and SBA programs supporting supplier capability development. Analysis of mature circular procurement programs suggests 18–36 month payback periods when TCO modeling captures full lifecycle costs—with ongoing cost advantages emerging as recycled material markets scale and virgin material prices incorporate increasing carbon costs.

Sources

• Ellen MacArthur Foundation. (2024). "The Circular Economy in Practice: Procurement Transformation Report." Cowes: Ellen MacArthur Foundation.

• McKinsey & Company. (2024). "Circular Procurement: Capturing Value While Cutting Scope 3 Emissions." McKinsey Sustainability Practice Report.

• Deloitte. (2025). "State of Circular Procurement: Enterprise Capability Assessment." Deloitte Insights.

• Science Based Targets initiative. (2024). "SBTi Corporate Net-Zero Standard v2.0: Scope 3 Target-Setting Requirements." SBTi Technical Guidance.

• World Business Council for Sustainable Development. (2024). "Circular Supply Chain Playbook: Procurement Strategies for Net Zero." WBCSD Geneva.

• International Organization for Standardization. (2024). "ISO 59000 Series: Circular Economy Standards for Procurement and Supply Chain Management." ISO Technical Committee 323.

• US Securities and Exchange Commission. (2024). "The Enhancement and Standardization of Climate-Related Disclosures for Investors: Final Rule." SEC Release No. 33-11275.

• European Commission. (2024). "Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation: Digital Product Passport Technical Requirements." Official Journal of the European Union.