FAIR RUBBER: SCHWALBE EXPANDS THE SHARE OF TIRES ENORMOUSLY
RUBBER PIVOT ENDS ARE DIRECTLY BACKED WITH PREMIUM
It is a great success for a flagship project that directly supports people at the beginning of the supply chain: Schwalbe is enormously expanding the proportion of Fair Rubber in its products. The number of tire models that can be produced with fair trade natural rubber will be increased sixfold.
All Schwalbe gravel tires from the G-One series, the three Pro One road bike models (Tubeless, Tube & TT) and the mountain bike tires Nobby Nic, Magic Mary and Big Betty are now equipped with Fair Rubber in the Evolution Line. The cargo tire Pick-Up and the e-bike specialist Marathon E-Plus were the first bicycle tires to be produced with it, as was the Marathon Plus Wheelchair as the first wheelchair tire.
Felix Jahn, head of the CSR department at Schwalbe: “We set the goal of expanding our fair rubber capacities in the 2021 CSR report. It is great that we have actually reached this milestone and have been able to increase the number of members in Fair Rubber e.V. from 277 in 2020 to 2,320 in 2022. More and more smallholders are benefiting from fair trade.
Jahn continues: "In addition, we receive significantly larger quantities of fair trade natural rubber, which we use in the production of numerous other tire models. But the end has not yet been reached. We are currently working intensively with Fair Rubber e.V. to steadily increase capacities.”
Three years ago, Schwalbe set out together with Fair Rubber e.V. to support the people at the beginning of the supply chain. And directly: For every kilo of natural rubber, Schwalbe pays a premium of 0.50 euros directly to the certified smallholders and tappers. This corresponds to about a third of the current world market price. They decide for themselves what to do with the additional financial support. This improves their living conditions, for example by renovating local schools to give children access to education.
Stefan Hörmann, Managing Director of Fair Rubber e.V.: "Schwalbe shows responsibility by taking the lead in fair trade natural rubber. In 2020, together with Fair Rubber e.V., Schwalbe started directly supporting the people who work on the rubber tree to ensure that a bicycle tire is commercially available at the end of the supply chain. I'm thrilled with what we've achieved together to date.” So far, Schwalbe is the only tire manufacturer that uses fair trade rubber in its products and helps people directly with a financial bonus. The certified natural rubber from Indonesia comes from so-called jungle plantations. Unlike monocultures, this type of planting preserves the high biodiversity of the rainforest.
A few months ago, a Schwalbe delegation visited the schools, but also the plantations on site. In the very rural region on Java about 140 kilometres away from the Schwalbe plant, the working day for the rubber tappers begins at dusk when the first trees are tapped. The trickling latex milk is collected, fetched and later processed into rubber blocks. Natural rubber is one of the most important raw materials for the production of bicycle tyres.
Further information
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