{"id":9102,"date":"2021-12-13T08:00:52","date_gmt":"2021-12-13T08:00:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/focus.cbbc.org\/?p=9102"},"modified":"2025-04-23T09:48:26","modified_gmt":"2025-04-23T09:48:26","slug":"where-do-china-and-the-uk-stand-on-green-manufacturing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/focus.cbbc.org\/where-do-china-and-the-uk-stand-on-green-manufacturing\/","title":{"rendered":"Where do China and the UK stand on green manufacturing?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Both the UK and China have committed to lowering carbon emissions and reducing the impact of the manufacturing sector on the environment. So what scope is there for cooperation between the UK and China in green manufacturing?<\/h2>\n

China and the UK are the largest and ninth-largest manufacturing countries in the world respectively. Despite both countries having made great efforts in developing the green manufacturing sector, there remains a lot of potential for joint projects and initiatives.<\/p>\n

A new report produced by CBBC, the Department for International Trade (DIT) of the UK government, and the Centre for International Economic and Technological Cooperation of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology of China (CIETC-MIIT) aims to explore the scope, attributes, and strengths of green manufacturing in both countries, identify opportunities, and make recommendations for governments, industries and researchers in order to boost trade, investment, and international cooperation<\/a> between China and the UK. (Click the link at the bottom of this article for the full report<\/em>).<\/p>\n

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First off, what exactly is green manufacturing?<\/h3>\n

There are a number of attributes that can be used to characterise or define green manufacturing:<\/p>\n

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  1. Green manufacturing companies embrace the challenge of de-carbonising at scale and are committed to a net zero<\/a> or carbon neutral pathway and target.<\/li>\n
  2. Green manufactured products deliver economic, social and environmental benefits.<\/li>\n
  3. Green manufacturing companies embrace the circular economy and other strategies to maximising value from resources.<\/li>\n
  4. Green manufacturing companies and products do not have adverse effects on biodiversity or human health and wellbeing.<\/li>\n
  5. Green manufacturing companies seek external independent validation of their progress through certification of their plants and operations, their energy, carbon, and resource footprint, or their labelling of products.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    The UK is at the forefront of creating the standards and certifications that are used by green manufacturing companies. For example, the world\u2019s first product carbon footprint standard, PAS 2050, was developed by the British Standards Institute.<\/p>\n

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    Comparing a circular economic model and a linear economic model<\/p><\/div>\n

    Green manufacturing in the UK<\/h3>\n

    Green manufacturing in the UK is not just about the goods it makes or the way in which they are produced, but also about the people that make them and the spaces, regions, and ecosystems in which they are made. The UK manufacturing industry excels in areas such as clean technologies, energy efficiency, eco-design, and new and sustainable business models, and the UK government has made great efforts to support green manufacturing geared towards a circular economy.<\/p>\n