Sumitomo Chemical To Launch Meguri, A New Brand For Recycled Plastic Products

Sumitomo Chemical has launched Meguri, a new brand for plastic products obtained through recycling technology. The Company will work to spread Meguri products to contribute to the reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and other environmental impacts.

The brand name Meguri means “circularity” in Japanese and was created by young employees, who will lead the next generation of Sumitomo Chemical, to express their commitment to connecting three “circularities” to the future. Meguri represents "a circular economy for resources," "circle of people," and “circling back to the origin”—to Sumitomo Chemical’s founding spirit of solving social issues through its business activities. This spirit has been upheld in the Sumitomo Chemical Group for over a century since the Company got its start to produce fertilizer from harmful sulfur dioxide to overcome smoke pollution caused by copper smelting. The tagline "CIRCULARITY FOR ALL" demonstrates the Company’s firm determination to contribute to creating a circular economy.

Meguri covers a variety of recycled plastic products, such as acrylic resin (PMMA, poly-methyl-methacrylate), polyethylene and polypropylene produced by chemical or material recycling technologies. Sumitomo Chemical will start promotion of Meguri with the recycled acrylic resin obtained from a pilot facility for chemical recycling, which is to be constructed at the Ehime Works in Japan as announced on August 23, 2021, and plans to include polyethylene derived from municipal waste, which is being developed jointly with SEKISUI CHEMICAL CO., LTD., and polypropylene compounds for automotive parts made by recycling used plastic. The Company will continue to expand the lineup of Meguri and increase production and sales of these products, while also building an alliance with customers, other companies in the industry, local governments and other stakeholders for collecting plastic waste, to help develop a circular economy.

Sumitomo Chemical positions its contribution to reducing environmental impact, including efforts towards a circular economy for plastic resources, as one of the material issues to be addressed as management priorities. The Sumitomo Chemical Group will continue to work as one to create both economic value and social value in an integrated manner, achieving sustained growth for the Group and contributing to building a sustainable society.