Circular Procurement

Circular Procurement

Procurement has the potential to shift the market towards more circular products and business models. Cities can help accelerate this shift by using their procurement and investment budgets to drive demand for circular products and services and by integrating standards for circular products and services in existing public procurement tenders and frameworks. Such actions can make procurement a powerful tool for cities aiming to transition towards a circular economy; public spending for goods and services amounts to nearly 19% of the EU’s annual GDP.

Implementing Circular Procurement

Circular procurement is a different way of acquiring goods and services. It means to look beyond the purchasing price and, instead, to also consider the lifecycle of products throughout the supply chain. Implementing circular procurement means to shift the focus towards the use of a product, rather than on its ownership. This circular approach to procurement can contribute to the development of circular business models. As a city, you can also use circular procurement to achieve goals related to resource efficiency, social responsibility and economic resilience.

If you want to get started with circular procurement, you can become a CityLoops Replicator, or get in touch with the partners ICLEI Local Governments for Sustainability and The Dutch Ministry of Instrastructure and Water Management.

Find key resources about circular procurement on our publications page.

Circular Procurement in CityLoops

Circular procurement experts Rijkswaterstaat (RWS) and ICLEI are helping each city identify how and which procurement activities could be used to strategically support CityLoops demonstration actions. Over the course of CityLoops, a series of activities will be undertaken to promote and support circular procurement implementation at the city level. Cities define how circular procurement can support their ambitions in becoming circular, this includes guidelines on including circular procurement in the CDW and and biowaste sectors.