Taking a step towards a sustainable solution to plastic pollution, German company COPECTO is ‘greening’ the payment industry by offering the world’s first plastic-free wooden card for the payment and non-payment sector.
In the war to reduce waste and promote a sustainable, circular economy, plastic remains a formidable adversary.
Despite posing universal challenge, plastic continues to be an essential material for numerous indispensable items, such as bank cards.
Globally, over 25 billion plastic cards are in use, a significant number of which are crafted from non-biodegradable virgin plastics such as PVC.
Annually, an additional six billion cards are manufactured to replace those that have reached the end of their usability, typically spanning three to four years.
This is equivalent to 30,000 tons of PVC or the weight of 150 Boeing 747 wide-body aircraft!
While each card weighs around five grams, the production process demands 8-9 grams of plastic per card, resulting in a significant environmental burden. This cumulative impact is alarming.
Wooden wisdom: Breaking the plastic habit
Germany-based COPECTO, recognized the urgency of this issue and set out to revolutionize payment card production by introducing the world’s first plastic-free wooden card for the payment and non-payment sector.
“Our TIMBERCARD represents a paradigm shift in payment card technology. Crafted entirely from wood and utilizing biodegradable glue, it offers a sustainable alternative to conventional plastic cards. By leveraging sustainable materials, we drastically reduce carbon emissions associated with card production, making a tangible contribution to environmental preservation,” says Ashwini Pandey, Chief Product Officer, and Head of Sales at COPECTO.
The TIMBERCARD boasts impressive environmental credentials. While a typical card body generates 90-100 grams of CO2 equivalent emissions, the wood card’s sustainable approach reduces this figure to a mere 40-50 grams, representing a substantial 50-60% reduction in emissions. Furthermore, unlike plastic, the card is fully biodegradable – except for the chip, the antenna, and the magnetic stripe – and can be used like a conventional bank card. Having been certified by Mastercard and Visa, the product has already reached market maturity, and has been proving itself in initial pilot projects for payment cards since September 2022.
However, some may question the sustainability of cutting down trees for wood.
From one cubic meter of wood, approximately 100,000 cards can be manufactured. Therefore, if the entire 6 billion plastic cards were substituted with wooden cards, it would necessitate around 60 cubic meters of wood.
“It’s important to note that sustainable forestry practices are widely adopted worldwide to address this concern. These practices prioritize responsible tree cultivation and ensure minimal harm to the environment,” says Pandey.
In regions such as Central Europe, sustainable forestry is particularly prevalent, leading to impressive rates of wood regeneration. Typically, when one cubic meter of wood is harvested, it regenerates within a mere 3-4 seconds due to the abundance of plant life and trees in these sustainable forest areas.
This rapid regrowth cycle ensures the continued health and productivity of forests. Essentially, the forest ecosystem can replenish itself within a few hours, demonstrating the feasibility of sustainably producing the large quantities of cards required to replace plastic alternatives.
From ‘sustainable forests’ to wallets: Debunking myths around longevity and reliability
The durability of wood cards poses a common concern among consumers, particularly when compared to plastic alternatives. Typically, card lifecycles span around four years, making longevity a crucial factor.
“We invested four years in engineering our wood card to ensure its durability,” explains Pandey, emphasizing COPECTO’s commitment to quality. Despite this, the main challenge lies in bending. Regulatory standards, established decades ago, mandate specific stiffness limits for wood cards. While plastic cards must endure 2000 bending cycles, wood cards are limited to 1000 cycles.
However, Pandey reassures that from an end consumer perspective, durability isn’t an issue. COPECTO’s wood cards maintain the same longevity as traditional options, with bending benchmarks meeting industry standards. Nonetheless, the disparity in bending capabilities prompts reflection on whether these stringent regulations are still necessary in today’s context.
“We have around 60,000 cards in Europe and this year we will touch around 1 million cards globally,” says Pandey.
He further adds, “We’ve had cards in circulation for approximately two years now, and we haven’t encountered any issues thus far. There have been no instances of breakage or delamination. Additionally, while hybrid cards, which incorporate metals, are available in the market, they tend to be slightly heavier.”
Regarding the properties of wood, Pandey explains, “Wood is inherently porous, but our patented technology effectively eliminates these pores, preventing moisture absorption.”
Price check: Evaluating the affordability of wood cards
Let’s consider the cost comparison between a wood card and a premium card currently available in the market. Premium cards typically consist of metal and vary in price across different markets. In the Indian market, a wood card would be approximately 40 percent more economical compared to a metal card. Similarly, in the European market, the price difference could range from 45 to 60 percent lower.
In contrast, when compared to a standard plastic card, the price of a wood card is approximately nine times higher. However, pricing dynamics are influenced by volume, meaning that higher production volumes can lead to lower prices.
“Efforts are underway to reduce the cost of wood cards and make them affordable for banks to adopt as a viable alternative. Currently, our supply chain is primarily based in Europe. However, we are actively working to expand into other regions like India to establish local supply chains and drive down costs. Our goal is to provide affordable and sustainable solutions to banks and consumers alike,” says Pandey.
Plastic-free finance: Leading the eco-friendly charge
The banking industry may not emit as many emissions as manufacturing or other sectors, but it plays a crucial role in promoting sustainability.
With regulations tightening, sustainable products are becoming more prevalent. Initiatives like the European Green Deal require companies to report their environmental impact, incentivizing them to adopt eco-friendly practices.
Financial institutions are leading the charge towards sustainability by directing investments into environmentally friendly projects. For instance, some banks have policies against investing in petroleum oil and refrain from funding environmentally damaging projects. Sustainable finance initiatives are gaining traction, with companies receiving interest rate discounts for meeting environmental targets or working towards achieving net-zero emissions.
In addition to promoting sustainable investments, banks are encouraging environmentally conscious consumer behavior. Swedish companies have patented methods to calculate emissions generated by spending on payment cards, motivating consumers to reduce their carbon footprint. Some banks in Europe even offer loyalty points or discounts for emission-reducing transactions.
Major players like Mastercard are also making strides towards sustainability. Mastercard has pledged to eliminate PVC plastics from its payment cards by 2028, transitioning to recycled or bio-sourced materials. Similarly, Triodos Bank offers biodegradable debit and credit cards in select countries, while Deutsche Bank plans to exclusively use recycled PVC for its cards by the end of 2024.
In India, Airtel Payments Bank has also joined the eco-friendly movement by introducing debit cards made of recycled PVC.
“These initiatives highlight the banking industry’s commitment to promoting sustainability and driving positive environmental change,” says Pandey.
