Survey with circular businesses at the IFAT 2022, Munich

The GIZ Global Project "Support of the Export Initiative Environmental Protection" presented itself at the IFAT, the world's largest trade fair for environmental technologies in Munich, with around 2,000 exhibitors and  120,000 visitors (May 30th to June 3rd, 2022). The top theme of the fair was the efficient use and recycling of resources.

At the IFAT interviews were conducted with 8 companies based in Germany, including 5 start-ups, on the topic of circular economy and international technology transfer to gain an overview of where companies are positioning themselves in the field of circular economy and to explore what main challenges these companies face in their international operations. 

The following three obstacles were mentioned by most companies that discourage them to enter foreign markets with their circular businesses:

- A few well-known players dominate the market abroad, so it is difficult for new companies to enter the market

- Conflicting international quality and market regulations, and taxation rules hinder the operations abroad

- There is a general lack of skilled labour force, especially in IT-related sectors, that might discourage companies to enter foreign markets

Photo credit: GIZ GmbH

The summary of the interviews can be downloaded in German.