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Our understanding - The WENKO CODE

Today, sustainability and environmental awareness are central topics of our society. Find out more here.

Sustainable products

You can find out which criteria are applicable for a sustainable product here 

Our fields of action

There is the opportunity for sustainable management in all business sectors. You can find our four key areas here. 

Our certificates

Sustainability, fair working conditions and environmental protection are of paramount importance to us. Find out more about our certificates here 

You are hereHomeSustainability

OUR UNDERSTANDING - The WENKO CODE

Today, sustainability and environmental awareness are central topics of our society. 
Our responsibility for the environment, the society we live in and sustainable action are essential elements of our corporate philosophy and are already firmly integrated into our business processes.
In future, we aim to concentrate even more on the active approach to our ecological and social responsibility. Consequently, we have formed an interdisciplinary team whose task is to continuously indicate any necessary improvements and ensure that they are implemented.

Together with our subsidiaries, we have committed ourselves to a certain catalogue of values, not only within our own global activities, but also throughout our entire supply chain. Our values are reflected in the principles of acknowledged global social and ecological standards; such as the United Nations’ Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGP), the International Labour Organization's (ILO) Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work.

In order to ensure that everything from production to delivery is performed according to our standards, we have developed our own WENKO Code, which suppliers and service providers must sign and adhere to.
This is the way in which we as a company ensure that everything from production to delivery is in line with our values and standards.

Click here for the WENKO Code

 

Should you wish to report a possible adverse human rights impact or initial suspicion to WENKO Wenselaar GmbH & Co KG, one of its subsidiaries or one of our suppliers, please use the following contact option to seek redress. We will always treat your concern with the utmost discretion. If you have any questions or comments about the WENKO Code, please contact csr@wenko.de.

OUR SUSTAINABILITY CRITERIA

Sustainability is always subjective, a question of personal priorities. To some, it is important that the products are made of recycled materials.
Others attach more importance to sustainable production processes or short delivery routes.
We have determined the following criteria to achieve a uniform definition for our understanding of sustainable products:

Rapidly-growing raw materials
The product consists of a rapidly renewable raw material such as bamboo or jute

Durability
Stainless steel makes products 
durable and prevents
having to quickly purchase new ones.

Recyclable
A recyclable product is also sustainable for us,
because raw materials can be returned to material circulation.

Recycled materials
A product made of recycled materials protects the environment,
because no new resources and raw materials are used.

Saving resources
Water, wood & many materials are limited resources.
We label products that help to save resources as sustainable.

FSC® certified
In particular in the timber industry, 
environmentally-friendly cultivation is important.
Therefore, we rely on FSC®-certified wood.

OUR FIELDS OF ACTION

Produkt

Measures within our product range

For example:

  • As many as 25.6% of the products in our range already fulfil our sustainability criteria.
  • We test alternative materials to increase the sustainability of existing products. For example, stainless steel has replaced chrome in a large number of our standard products.
  • The Product Management department is constantly reviewing our packaging and reducing materials wherever possible. Over a period of 3 years, we have been able to reduce the use of plastic by 17.72% and cardboard by 43.07% in the German market (status 2020).
Logistik

Measures in the area of logistics

For example:

  • Worldwide storage and production locations, including those in Europe, shorten transport routes all over the world.
  • We continuously strive to improve our transport packaging. For example, recycled cardboard is replacing polystyrene. This already saves 14 tonnes of polystyrene every year and reduces the transport volume by 40%.
  • We are constantly replacing the poly bags we use to protect our products with paper, and are, as a result, able to save 6,290 kg of plastic per year with the measures taken.
  • Deliveries to our direct customers are packed exclusively with filling material made of recycled cardboard and paper, which is certified with the Blue Angel, the German label for environmentally friendly products.
Unternehmen

Measures within the company

For example:

  • Our power supply for the headquarters in Hilden and the logistics in Hückelhoven is to a great extent provided by renewable energy sources.
  • We do not dispose of returns, unpacked photo samples and product samples: Each product is inspected in a complex process and returned to the goods cycle, if possible.
  • We have installed seven drinking water treatment systems at our headquarters. Each employee was given a reusable bottle made of recycled glass.
  • The changeover from single desktop printers to a central printing system results in a saving of 1.22 million sheets per year.
Gesellschaft

Measures for the environment and society

For example:

  • Bee WENKO Since 2019, we have been hosting our own bee colonies on the WENKO premises as an employee project.
  • Clean-up campaigns: We regularly collect litter from around our premises.
  • We are a family business, and as such we take our social responsibility very seriously. Therefore, we provide financial support and material donations for regional projects with the aim of encouraging and supporting children.
ProduktLogistikUnternehmenGesellschaft

Measures within our product range

For example:

  • As many as 25.6% of the products in our range already fulfil our sustainability criteria.
  • We test alternative materials to increase the sustainability of existing products. For example, stainless steel has replaced chrome in a large number of our standard products.
  • The Product Management department is constantly reviewing our packaging and reducing materials wherever possible. Over a period of 3 years, we have been able to reduce the use of plastic by 17.72% and cardboard by 43.07% in the German market (status 2020).

Measures in the area of logistics

For example:

  • Worldwide storage and production locations, including those in Europe, shorten transport routes all over the world.
  • We continuously strive to improve our transport packaging. For example, recycled cardboard is replacing polystyrene. This already saves 14 tonnes of polystyrene every year and reduces the transport volume by 40%.
  • We are constantly replacing the poly bags we use to protect our products with paper, and are, as a result, able to save 6,290 kg of plastic per year with the measures taken.
  • Deliveries to our direct customers are packed exclusively with filling material made of recycled cardboard and paper, which is certified with the Blue Angel, the German label for environmentally friendly products.

Measures within the company

For example:

  • Our power supply for the headquarters in Hilden and the logistics in Hückelhoven is to a great extent provided by renewable energy sources.
  • We do not dispose of returns, unpacked photo samples and product samples: Each product is inspected in a complex process and returned to the goods cycle, if possible.
  • We have installed seven drinking water treatment systems at our headquarters. Each employee was given a reusable bottle made of recycled glass.
  • The changeover from single desktop printers to a central printing system results in a saving of 1.22 million sheets per year.

Measures for the environment and society

For example:

  • Bee WENKO Since 2019, we have been hosting our own bee colonies on the WENKO premises as an employee project.
  • Clean-up campaigns: We regularly collect litter from around our premises.
  • We are a family business, and as such we take our social responsibility very seriously. Therefore, we provide financial support and material donations for regional projects with the aim of encouraging and supporting children.

AN OVERVIEW OF OUR CERTIFICATES

We have been successful on the market for more than 63 years and aim to strengthen the trust that the customers place in the company in future, too. Therefore, factors such as sustainability, working conditions and environmental protection are constantly gaining importance. We presuppose that our products are manufactured under fair conditions and with sensibly produced raw materials. This is why WENKO participates in various certification procedures.

 

If you have any questions regarding our certificates, please feel free to send us an e-mail to csr@wenko.de:


Since 2017, we have been FSC® (Forest Stewardship Council®) certified as an environmentally conscious and future-oriented company. The FSC® label on our wood or paper products is a clear indicator for the fact that the product originates from responsible forestry. Products bearing the FSC® label safeguard the use of the forests in accordance with the social, economic and ecological requirements of present and future generations.


OEKO-Tex is the brand name of a textile label awarded by the International Association for Research and Testing in the field of textile and leather ecology. Products at all processing stages along the textile value chain are tested for health safety, and production sites are tested for socially and environmentally compatible manufacturing conditions.

Click here for the Oeko-Tex certificate​​​​​​​


Since October 2010, WENKO has been a member of the BSCI (Business Social Compliance Initiative) and has committed itself, its suppliers and sub-suppliers to the adherence to the Code of Conduct for Social and Environmental Standards such as the prevention of child labour, fair working conditions and safe waste management.