Future Tire: Supply-chain, recycling challenge sector

Brussels – The European tire industry is becoming increasingly challenged by sustainability and supply-chain issues, Peter Taylor OBE said at the opening of the Future Tire Conference 28-29 Oct in Brussels

In his opening remarks, the conference chairman pointed to a lack of progress with environmental programmes within the industry, particularly those dealing with end-of-life tires, which he said were starting to falter.

“There Is a lot of talk about the ‘green tire’ but as far as I am concerned they are still very black,” he commented. “The greening of the vehicle tire still has some way to go.”

Taylor who is secretary of the UK’s Tyre Recovery Association and director of the Imported Tyre Manufacturers Association went on to highlight problems posed by size proliferation and brand diversity within the tire market.

“Tire manufacturers have lost control of their routes to market because they have become too complex and too expensive for individual producers to manage themselves,” he told delegates at the Future Tire conference.