Whole of Government Circular Economy Strategy 2026-2028: Accelerating Action

In a circular economy, waste and resource use is minimised, and the value of products and materials is maintained for as long as possible. Materials can be designed to be less resource intensive, more durable and waste can be recaptured as a resource to manufacture new materials and products. In a circular economy, when a product has reached its end of life, its material parts can then be used again to create new, refurbished or remanufactured products.

A circular economy has the potential to significantly reduce our dependency on primary resource extraction and complex global supply chains, thereby strengthening state and business resilience and competitiveness in the face of supply shocks. It creates new jobs in the domestic economy, including in rural areas.

The Programme for Government commits to ending the wasteful cycle of "take-make-consume-throw-away", promoting sustainable practices that extend the life of products and reduce waste and to supporting enterprises in the circular economy including repair and refurbishment centres.

Resource efficiency and boosting circular use of materials also plays a crucial role in decarbonisation and protecting natural resources, the environment and health. This second whole-of-government Circular Economy Strategy seeks to promote these co-benefits.

The Circular Economy Strategy 2026-2028 positions circularity as central to Ireland's economic competitiveness, environmental sustainability, and social wellbeing—moving Ireland from a linear "take–make–waste" model to a regenerative, closed-loop system where materials are kept in use for as long as possible.

The core objectives of this strategy are to:

• Raise Ireland’s circular material use rate (CMUR): Increase Ireland’s circular material use rate by two percentage points each year, with the aim of reaching 12% by 2030.
• Support economic expansion while improving resource productivity and reducing dependency on virgin raw materials.
• Enhance competitiveness and innovation: Strengthen Ireland’s position as a centre for sustainable design, advanced manufacturing and innovative circular business models, enhancing competitiveness in domestic and export markets
• Enhance social equity: Ensure the benefits of the circular transition are widely shared by communities and workers.
• Empower people to make sustainable, cost-effective lifestyle choices.
• Actively support local authorities in developing coordinated, community-level circular initiatives.
• Digitalisation is established as an enabler of the circular economy by businesses adopting digital tools such as digital product passports, traceability and resource optimisation systems

The Circular Economy and Miscellaneous Provisions Act 2022 underpins Ireland’s shift to a more sustainable pattern of production and consumption, that retains the value of resources in the economy for as long as possible. Furthermore, there are a range of European laws and measures in this area which form part of this second whole of government Circular Economy Strategy.

This second whole of government Circular Economy Strategy includes actions and targets for specific sectors (Construction, Agriculture, Retail, Packaging, Textiles & Electronic Equipment) that will drive reductions in material resource consumption in addition to increases in the levels of repair and reuse and re-usable products and materials. These have been developed in co-operation and collaboration with relevant line Departments.

In 2024, the Department commissioned a ‘circularity gap analysis’, to determine Ireland’s circularity baseline, by analysing how materials flow through the Irish economy. The Circularity Gap Report Ireland indicates that our Circularity Metric stands at 2.7% - meaning that over 97% of the materials flowing through our economy come from virgin sources. The Circularity Gap Report has also shown that whilst Ireland still operates within a linear model, with high material and carbon footprints, advancing the circular economy has transformative potential for the country. The Gap Report also demonstrates that transitioning to a more circular society helps decarbonisation, competitiveness and economic security. This evidence base was key to the development of the Circular Economy Strategy 2026-2028.

A public consultation on the Circular Economy Strategy 2026-2028 took place from 25 September to 5 November 2025. There were over 120 submissions received which have been carefully reviewed by the Department and are reflected to the greatest extent possible in the final text of the Strategy as appropriate.