May 21, 2025 – The circular economy sector has recently witnessed a significant milestone as RetourMatras, in collaboration with Ingka Investments—the investment arm of IKEA’s parent company, Ingka Group—has officially inaugurated its first-ever mattress recycling facility in Lacavalery, France. This marks a substantial step forward in the partnership’s commitment to advancing circular economy practices.
Earlier this year, Ingka Group announced its plan to allocate an additional $1 billion (approximately RMB 7.33 billion) to enhance recycling infrastructure, with a focus on plastics and mattresses, aligning with the group’s 2030 vision of achieving a “fully circular” economy and its 2050 net-zero emissions target. The establishment of RetourMatras’s French plant is a pivotal component of this investment strategy.
According to sources from the color masterbatch industry (as per our understanding), the new facility boasts an annual processing capacity of 750,000 mattresses, leveraging RetourMatras’s cutting-edge recycling technology to efficiently transform discarded mattresses into reusable raw materials. Since 2019, Ingka Investments has been collaborating with IKANO Industry and Renewi to support RetourMatras’s expansion across Europe, an initiative that forms a crucial part of Ingka Investments’ €1 billion investment strategy aimed at fostering circular economy infrastructure.
In France, around 4 million discarded mattresses are recycled annually through specialized organizations like Ecomaison. These mattresses are sent to various dismantling centers, including RetourMatras’s new facility, which achieves an impressive 80% material recovery rate, encompassing foam, textiles, wood, and metal. These recycled materials are then repurposed for new product manufacturing.
Karen Pflug, Chief Sustainability Officer at Ingka Group, emphasized that recycling is a key strategy for enhancing material utilization and reducing reliance on virgin resources. Faced with the pressures on current recycling systems, Ingka Group views investment and innovation as critical opportunities to accelerate the transition to a circular economy.
Notably, recycled polyurethane foam can be converted into regenerated polyols through chemical recycling processes, a vital ingredient for producing new polyurethane foam, potentially replacing fossil-based materials. IKEA plans to incorporate this recycled material into its HÖJEHALL mattress series, set to launch in the French market in July 2025, which will also feature recycled metals and textiles, underscoring IKEA’s unwavering commitment to sustainability and circular economy principles.
Peter van der Poel, Managing Director at Ingka Investments, highlighted that transitioning to a circular economy is crucial for managing the planet’s resource consumption. By investing in RetourMatras, Ingka Group is striving to achieve a balance between mattress recycling and sales volumes by 2030. RetourMatras not only transforms end-of-life mattresses into valuable resources but also incorporates them into 31 product lines, including sofas and mattresses, showcasing the immense potential of circular economy practices.
As a leader in mattress dismantling, RetourMatras operates seven dismantling facilities across the Netherlands, the UK, and France. Since 2011, the company has been at the forefront of mattress recycling, dedicated to converting waste into valuable resources. Mark Lewis, CEO of RetourMatras, expressed the company’s commitment to expanding its operations to support sustainable development in more regions and countries, contributing to the circular economy across Europe and beyond.
Furthermore, IKEA is collaborating closely with various stakeholders, including government policymakers, to advocate for prioritizing recycling over incineration for discarded mattresses, aiming to enhance mattress recycling capabilities throughout the EU. Ingka Investments also calls for strengthened legislative support, such as improving “Extended Producer Responsibility” schemes and formulating eco-design regulations, to further drive the circular economy’s development.