Canon Inc. has announced a significant step in its sustainability journey by integrating recycled steel material (electric furnace steel sheets) into its printing products starting in 2025. This initiative will include office multifunction devices (MFDs), home inkjet printers, large-format inkjet printers, and commercial printing presses, with plans to expand the use of recycled materials in future product lines.
Electric furnace steel sheets are produced from recycled steel scrap, significantly reducing the need for new resources while enhancing the resource recycling rate. Unlike traditional blast furnace steel sheets, which rely on iron ore, electric furnace steel production generates approximately 80% less CO2 emissions, making it a key contributor to decarbonization. Steel is the second-most used material in Canon’s printing products, after plastic, and the company has optimized its processing methods to incorporate recycled steel without compromising product quality.
Canon’s Closed-Loop Recycling System
Canon has implemented a closed-loop recycling system to support this initiative. Canon Ecology Industry Co., Ltd., a Canon Group company, plays a pivotal role by collecting, sorting, and refining steel scrap from used office MFDs. The refined scrap is then supplied to Tokyo Steel Manufacturing Co., Ltd. (Tokyo Steel)—an electric furnace steelmaker—for processing. Between April 2020 and March 2024, Canon supplied over 5,000 tons of collected steel scrap to Tokyo Steel. In return, the company will use the recycled electric furnace steel sheets produced by Tokyo Steel to manufacture its next-generation sustainable printing products.
Canon’s Resource Recycling and Sustainability Goals
Canon’s Digital Printing Business has set ambitious resource recycling targets to increase the use of recycled materials in its products. The company aims for a 20% resource recycling rate by 2025 and 50% by 2030, building on a 17% rate achieved in 2023 (up from 16% in 2022). To achieve these goals, Canon is improving resource sorting accuracy, increasing the reuse rate of parts in recycled MFDs, and enhancing the production volume of internally recycled materials.
Furthermore, Canon remains committed to its long-term environmental vision. The company has been working towards net zero CO2 emissions by 2050, striving for an annual 3% reduction in lifecycle CO2 emissions per product since 2008. As a result, Canon has surpassed this goal with an annual average reduction of 3.95%, achieving a cumulative improvement of 44.4% between 2008 and 2023.
With this latest initiative, Canon is reinforcing its commitment to environmental sustainability by reducing waste, lowering CO2 emissions, and advancing resource efficiency, ensuring that its next generation of printing products is both innovative and eco-friendly.
