Beko's innovative products reflect the brand's sustainability mission

Beko, Europe’s leading home appliance brand, believes that humans and the planet are interconnected. To raise awareness of Beko’s sustainability mission, the brand held a virtual showcase of its eco-friendly appliances with Arçelik’s CEO Hakan Bulgurlu, CMO Zeynep Yalım Uzun, and CCO Ragıp Balcıoğlu and with a special guest from the World Business Council for Sustainable Development, Brendan Edgerton, Circular Economy Director.

Beko unveiled seven sustainable products in the launch, including a washing machine/washer dryer, oven, tumble dryer, refrigerator, espresso coffee maker, and dishwasher to help consumers reduce their impact on the environment. The innovative products use recycled materials such as PET bottles, fishing nets; bio-composites such as coffee residue and eggshells, and detergent-saving technologies for sustainable living.

At the event, Beko shared a Europe-wide survey on people’s attitudes and concerns about sustainability. Its results show that the vast majority of Europeans (UK 88%, IT 88%, ES 87%, DE 84%, FR 78%, PL 74%) of the six countries asked said they feel it is their personal responsibility to make a difference by minimizing waste, water, and energy use in their daily lives. The number of people thinking it is down to others, such as the government or business, or who think that they cannot make a difference, is negligible. 

Recycling is found to be the most popular activity linked to sustainability that people practice at home. Interestingly, this activity scores significantly higher in the UK market at 84% compared to all others, with Italy coming closest at 78% and Germany last at 66%. 

When asked what else they could do to protect the planet, respondents list in order of effectiveness, buying sustainable products, fighting food waste, reducing air travel, and eating less meat. The main obstacle to living more sustainably at home is found to be the perception of high prices of sustainable products in all countries. 

Price is the most important decider when buying a home appliance, with longevity and environmental friendliness coming in after, despite most of the respondents (IT 88%, ES 86%, FR 85%, PL 84%, UK 77%, DE 75%) agreeing on the importance of purchasing sustainable home appliances that have a meaningful positive impact on our planet.

Hakan Bulgurlu, CEO of Arçelik, said, “Our goals in sustainability and our leading efforts in innovation are two great parts of the same whole. Their evolution depends on each other. It is up to us to find better, more environmentally conscious ways of conducting our lives. With a series of eco-friendly Beko appliances, customers can now fully equip a sustainable home.” 

Arçelik’s CMO, Zeynep Yalım Uzun added “Beko’s brand purpose is empowering future generations to live healthier lives, which is only possible by living more sustainably and working towards a healthier planet. All our actions and every product we use have an impact on nature. So, beyond this seven-product portfolio, we are eager to adapt our existing technologies to make all our appliances more environmentally friendly too. For Beko, this is only the beginning.”

“At Beko, we are passionate about democratizing technology, making it affordable, and ensuring that as many people as possible have access to it. By making sustainability a business model and integrating it into everything we do, we strive to reduce human environmental damage through developing high-performance, durable, affordable home appliances that are also eco-friendly”, said Arçelik’s CCO Ragıp Balcıoğlu.

”We have to protect and preserve the environment for future generations and now, more than ever, we must act and make changes in this direction. Beko has taken this step and we are proud to offer Romanian customers access to ground-breaking products that will help them lead a sustainable life. We actively support the group's mission on sustainability and have integrated this component as a vital part of our business model, and the production unit in Ulmi, the only 4.0 factory in Romania, represents our commitment in this direction", said Murat Büyükerk, Chief Arctic Executive Officer.

Products with recycled materials for the planet: 

EcoTub Washing Machine & Washer Dryer*

• Plastic waste transformed into a valuable alternative raw material 
• Approximately up to 60 recycled 0.5L PET bottles used in the tubs of washing machines and washer dryers on certain models
• Recycled PET flakes used along with other plastics and additives without an effect on the tub’s effective performance
• World’s first example of this type of application in home appliances
• This eco-friendly new manufacturing method significantly lowers carbon dioxide emissions
• Since the beginning of this project in 2017, 58 million plastic bottles have been recycled with a reduction of CO2 emissions by almost 2,200 tons.

EcoFiber Oven

• A sustainable material from recycled fishnet waste and industrial thread waste 
• 5% recycled fishnet waste and 65% industrial thread waste used in plastic parts such as door decor plastic and display cover
• 50% of the BI Oven inner display cover made from industrial thread waste

GreenDry Tumble Dryer

• Uses recycled plastic in 15% of its plastic parts on average, including in the water tank housing and back cover
• In the past two years, 2,420 tonnes of plastic were recycled for this cause.

Products with bio-composites for the planet:

BioCycle Refrigerator 

• Durable components composed of bio-based plastics 
• Egg trays made from eggshell wastes and bioplastics 
• Each fridge’s two egg trays** contain eggshell waste from 5 eggs.
• The fan cover is 100% bio-based plastics (33gr) from sustainable resources such as corn starch or sugarcane
• The door seal is 25% bio-based (soybean oil) materials (195 gr).

BioCoffee Espresso Machine

• Developed with bio-composite technology
• Each Espresso Machine is made of five cups of coffee residue, reducing carbon footprint by 5% in bio-composite parts

Product that reduces chemicals:

AutoDose Dishwasher

• AutoDose dispenses the right amount of detergent for sparkling clean dishes every time
• In each wash, up to 28%**** less detergent used with Autodose for healthy living on a healthy planet 

*Current products available from the Çayırova Washing Machine Plant are 8-9-10 kg 1400-1600 rpm WM and 8/5kg & 10/6 kg WD. The target is to expand PET usage to other plants.

**The number of egg trays can change according to the model

*** For lightly soiled dishes & gel detergent usage

About Beko

Beko is the international home appliance brand of Arçelik. It offers product lines that include major appliances, air conditioners, and small appliances. Beko is the leading freestanding home appliances brand in Europe in the white goods sector and the no.1 large home appliances brand in the UK. The brand is the Main Partner of FC Barcelona, naming partner of Fenerbahçe Men’s Basketball Team and Official Supplier of European League of Legends Championship (LEC).

Beko has been focusing on healthy living for years, raising awareness and developing products that make healthy living possible and convenient. Now the brand mission is ‘healthy living is only possible on a healthy planet’. Every action we take to be healthy depends on the planet’s health as well. Beko is committed to protecting our Mother Earth by designing and manufacturing energy-efficient products and investing in resource efficiency in production. Beko encourages its competitors to follow suit.

Beko in Romania

Beko entered the Arctic portfolio in 2003, shortly after the Arçelik group purchased the majority shares of the Romanian company. The brand launched on the local market with a full range of home appliances that make a difference using state-of-the-art technology and modern design. Beko strengthened its position as a premium innovating brand through the launch of products designed for young families with children (Bebeko by Beko sub-range, 2005), animal lovers (the PET technology washing machine), or pioneering blue light sub-range Beko Smart Blue Line. Thus, Beko became one of the first durable goods brands to dominate the Romanian market. 

About Beko’s parent company, Arçelik:

Arçelik is proud to be recognized as the Industry Leader in the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI) in Household Durables Category in 2019 and 2020. Arçelik has been included in the index for the 4th year in a row. Arçelik’s mission is ‘Respecting the World, Respected Worldwide’.

For further information please contact: Anca Dorombach , +40 721 379 605, anca@oxygencomms.ro.