Ingka Group is supporting the Shanghai-based plastics recycler Re-mall as part of its ambitious $1.16 billion investment initiative aimed at helping IKEA’s largest retailer achieve its goals of repurposing and reusing more materials in its products.

Source: Trellis

This initiative marks Ingka’s inaugural investment in a circular economy infrastructure company in China, which is one of the largest markets for plastic waste globally.

Founded in 2015, Re-mall specializes in producing high-quality post-consumer recycled propylene from food packaging—an area known for its processing difficulties due to organic residues. Its production facility is located in Jiangxi province, a key hub for plastic waste streams originating from Shanghai and Guangzhou.

The plastic pellets and materials produced by Re-mall can be utilized in various products, such as:

• Toys
• Tableware
• Cosmetics packaging
• Woven textiles

Re-mall is establishing closed-loop relationships with its major clients, collecting materials from these brands and reintegrating recycled materials back into their supply chains.

Ingka’s Support

While the exact amount of Ingka’s investment remains undisclosed, it is categorized as growth capital aimed at enhancing Re-mall’s commercial capacity.

The Broader Context

Ingka’s climate transition strategy focuses on reducing the carbon footprint associated with product end-of-use, which was responsible for 1.6 million metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions in 2024—accounting for 7 percent of the overall total.

This figure represents a 15 percent decrease from 2016, the baseline year for Ingka’s goal to halve emissions by 2030. Additionally, Ingka aims to achieve a “fully circular” operation by the end of the decade.

Ingka Investments announced its $1.16 billion (€1 billion) investment plan in January. Re-mall is the fourth publicly disclosed company in its portfolio, joining other European firms such as:

• RetourMatras: A mattress recycler that processed over 1 million mattresses in four facilities in 2024, preventing an estimated 90,000 tons of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions (tCO2e). RetourMatras sells recycled materials to customers like IKEA for new production.
• Morssinkhof Rymoplast: This company manages high-density polyethylene, low-density polyethylene, polyethylene terephthalate, and polypropylene plastics. Ingka acquired a 17 percent stake, which helped double Morssinkhof’s capacity.
• Next Generation Group: A provider of equipment for the plastics recycling industry.

According to its latest environmental progress report, Ingka estimates that these ventures have collectively recycled around 1.9 million metric tons of materials, avoiding an impressive 5 million metric tCO2e.