10 million tons of furniture are thrown out every year by companies and consumers across EU countries. The vast majority ends up in landfills or is sent to incineration. The trend is the same in Denmark.

Now, Malmö Municipality has adopted a circular approach with the aim to tackle the issue head on. More specifically, Malmö Municipality has entered into a new procurement agreement with several local companies, all of which sell and / or refurbish used furniture. The purchase agreement is the first circular procurement agreement Malmö Municipality has entered into, and since both buying new furniture and disposing of the discarded furniture requires a large amount of energy and resources, the purchase agreement is good for both the climate and the environment.

When the Municipality of Malmö had decided to try out such an innovative renewal offering, they saw a container full of discarded furniture from the Municipality, which was on its way to incineration. It showed that there was a potential! The new purchase agreement ensures that the furniture is not being discarded, but instead repaired and used for an extended period.

When the Municipality of Malmö sought out the companies that could potentially deliver on such an offer, they were surprised at how many good quality used furniture was available on the market. From that moment onwards, the municipality knew that it would not be a problem to find suppliers who would enter into an agreement.

The Municipality of Malmö would also make it possible to get repaired and refurbished furniture by the municipality’s in-house service staff and they will also be able to rent furniture for a short period. This ensures that furniture is used for an extended period, and when the furniture is no longer used by the municipality, it must be ensured that they are repaired or at least that the material is recycled.

Aalborg Municipality is a partner with Malmö Municipality in an EU project on circular public procurement (the CPP project).