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Continental boosts sustainable tyre production with recycled cooking oil rubber
Industry News- Sep 17,25
Continental is expanding renewable and recycled inputs in tyre manufacturing, including synthetic rubber from used cooking oil, circular resins, and biocircular additives, aiming for 40 per cent use by 2030.
Hannover (Germany)
Continental is accelerating the use of renewable and recycled resources in tyre manufacturing. In 2024, the average share of such materials reached 26 per cent, with an expected increase of two to three percentage points by the end of 2025. By 2030, the target is to achieve at least 40 per cent. Rubber and resins from sustainable sources form the core focus, as both are vital to tyre performance.
Synthetic rubber from renewable and recycled raw materials, alongside responsibly sourced natural rubber, is critical to the shift. Modern high-performance tyres contain up to 40 per cent rubber by weight, with composition varying according to function. Continental’s car tyres include as many as 100 raw materials and up to 20 tailored rubber compounds, increasingly incorporating recycled variants, sustainable additives, and circular resins for enhanced pliability and performance.
Jorge Almeida, head of Sustainability at Continental Tires, said: “We are closing the loop. Continental is intensifying its commitment to the circular economy and charting a course for the future. Innovative solutions allow us to employ more sustainable raw materials, such as synthetic rubber derived from used cooking oil or resins from certified renewable feedstocks.”
Rubber remains indispensable for mobility across cars, trucks, motorbikes, e-bikes, forklifts, and cranes. Continental mainly deploys two rubber categories: natural rubber, essential for durability and impact resistance in treads, and synthetic rubber, valued for braking and rolling resistance. Increasingly, synthetic rubber is sourced from more sustainable inputs, such as pyrolysis oil from end-of-life tyres or cooking oil, supplied by partners like Synthos and TotalEnergies Cray Valley under the ISCC PLUS certification system.
Resins are also vital in tyre compounds, balancing elasticity and resilience to enhance grip, abrasion resistance, and energy efficiency. Continental already employs ISCC PLUS-certified circular resins derived from renewable sources, including used vegetable oil. Alongside resins, additives play a key role. Continental is the first tyre manufacturer to use ISCC PLUS-certified TMQ rubber additive from LANXESS, based on biocircular acetone from recycled cooking oil. Life cycle assessments indicate this additive has a carbon footprint over 30 per cent lower than conventional equivalents.
Mass balance-certified materials ensure traceability throughout production. The approach combines fossil, renewable, and recycled materials while monitoring their flow across the value chain. This enables Continental to attribute sustainable inputs to final products and steadily increase their proportion. Matthias Haufe, head of Material Development and Industrialisation at Continental Tires, explained: “The mass balance system allows us to handle the complexity of raw materials at multiple sites and document our progress transparently as we expand the share of renewable and recycled inputs.”
Continental
Tyres
Jorge Almeida
Matthias Haufe
LANXESS
Synthos
TotalEnergies
ISCC PLUS
sustainable tyres
Germany
automotive industry
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