Our commitment to becoming carbon neutral by 2030 drives everything we do. Every Apple product will be made with clean energy and even more recycled and renewable materials. Because the earth won’t wait, and neither will we.
A plan designed for progress .A plan designed for progress .
20% of all materials shipped in products last year came from recycled sources.1
More than 250 suppliers, representing over 85% of our direct manufacturing spend, have committed to using 100% renewable electricity for Apple production.2
80% reduction in shipping emissions of HomePod (2nd generation) through our new transport plan.
Over 70% reduction in average product energy use since 2008.3
More than 40,000 tonnes of electronic scrap directed to recycling in 2022.
Behind every Apple product is a plan for the future.
Made with more recycled and renewable materials.
Using recycled materials is one of the ways we can lower the carbon impact of our products, since these materials often have a lower carbon footprint than materials from primary sources. We’re sourcing more recycled content than ever, which brings us closer to our goal of one day making products with only recycled and renewable materials.
20% of all materials shipped in products last year came from recycled sources.1
The energy that goes into manufacturing our products makes up the majority of our carbon footprint. That’s why our suppliers are transitioning to electricity generated from solar, wind and other renewable sources. So that by 2030, we can make every Apple product with 100% clean energy.
More than 250 suppliers, representing over 85% of our direct manufacturing spend, have committed to using 100% renewable electricity for Apple production.2
Shipping products to retail locations and customers all over the world carries a significant carbon impact. So we’re prioritising less carbon-intensive methods, such as rail, sea transport and electric vehicles.
80% reduction in shipping emissions of HomePod (2nd generation) through our new transport plan.
To lower the carbon footprint of Apple products in use around the world, we’re increasing their energy efficiency. And when it comes to the electricity our customers use to charge their Apple products, our goal is for it to be covered by 100% clean electricity.
Over 70% reduction in average product energy use since 2008.3
Apple products contain the building blocks for new ones. Our disassembly robots — Daisy, Dave and Taz — take apart devices and components to recover crucial materials like gold, cobalt, tungsten and rare earth elements, which can be used to build the next generation of products.4
More than 40,000 tonnes of electronic scrap directed to recycling in 2022.
We are prioritising reductions that will erase the majority of our products’ carbon footprint across their life cycle. But some emissions are still currently unavoidable. To offset remaining emissions, we’re investing in high-quality carbon removal projects that help restore ecosystems and support local communities.
The device you rely on most is made with more recycled materials .
What makes an iPhone an iPhone isn’t just its amazing camera, iconic look or life-changing features — it’s also its recycled materials. Recycled content isn’t new to iPhone. We used recycled plastic in the speaker enclosures as early as iPhone 6. iPhone is continuing to pave the way in environmental innovation when it comes to recycled materials. Gold is an important component of hardware design, and thanks to industry-leading levels of traceability, we’ve made significant progress towards closing the loop on our gold supply chain. iPhone 13 was the first Apple product to use certified recycled gold. With iPhone 14, we’ve expanded the use of 100% recycled gold to the wire of all cameras and the plating of multiple circuit boards.
iPhone 14 features many other fully recycled components, including recycled rare earth elements in all magnets, recycled tungsten in the Taptic Engine and recycled tin in the solder of multiple printed circuit boards. Even your unboxing is designed to be better for the planet — more than half of iPhone 14 packaging contains recycled wood fibre, and all the wood fibre we use is responsibly sourced. All these recycled materials continue to make iPhone one of the most durable, safe and powerful smartphones in the world.
100%recycled rare earth elements in all magnets and 100% recycled tin in the solder of multiple printed circuit boards.
70%of iPhone 14 packaging is made with recycled wood fibre.
Plug into a cleaner grid.
Energy-saving products reduce our carbon footprint. And yours.
Product energy use makes up almost a quarter of our total carbon footprint. It also has a direct impact on the carbon footprint of every Apple user. Designing products that require less energy is one of the major ways we can lower their carbon impact, even as they’re being used. In 2022, all eligible Apple devices received an ENERGY STAR® rating for superior energy efficiency.5 And the transition to Apple silicon in Mac computers has made a big difference in product energy efficiency. The new Mac mini with M2 Pro has a nearly 50% reduction in carbon footprint compared with the previous generation, largely because of the efficiency of Apple silicon.6
A cleaner way to get fully charged.
We’ve made it easier for you to lower the carbon footprint of your iPhone, even while you’re charging it. When an iPhone is connected to a charger, the Clean Energy Charging feature in iOS 16.1 and later looks at the sources of the electricity during expected charge time and optimises for when the grid is using cleaner energy sources like solar or wind.7 It’s one of the ways we use software updates and power-efficient components in our devices to intelligently manage the power they consume.
Using electricity from renewable sources to make Apple products
Clean energy is no longer optional.
The emissions from manufacturing our products account for about 66% of our carbon footprint. By transitioning to clean energy across our supply chain, we can erase the majority of that footprint. Since 2015, Apple’s Supplier Clean Energy Programme has helped our manufacturing suppliers switch to electricity generated from solar, wind and other renewable sources. Together with our suppliers, we’ve more than tripled the amount of renewable electricity in our supply chain in the last two years. And by 2030, every Apple product will be made with 100% clean energy.
17.4Mtonnes of carbon emissions avoided in 2022 through the renewable energy online in our supply chain.
250+suppliers have committed to transitioning to 100% renewable electricity for Apple production.
Aluminium with an edge.
Using recycled aluminium lowers the carbon impact of our products.
Aluminium gives many Apple products their iconic look and makes them both beautiful and durable. It’s also how we’re lowering our carbon footprint. Recycled aluminium has 1/40th the carbon footprint of aluminium from primary sources.8 Our 100% recycled aluminium alloy can be recycled indefinitely. We recover the high-quality aluminium scrap from our manufacturing processes, as well as from other post-industrial and post-consumer recycled sources, and put it back into new products. And we’ve expanded our use of recycled aluminium. We’re now using 100% recycled aluminium in the enclosures and cases of our most powerful devices — the new Mac mini, the new 14‑inch and 16‑inch MacBook Pro models, MacBook Air, all iPad models, Apple Watch Series 8 and Apple Watch SE.
We’ve rethought how aluminium is made.
For products with enclosures made with primary aluminium, we prioritise using aluminium smelted with low-carbon electricity sources rather than fossil fuels. We’ve also partnered with aluminium manufacturers and the governments of Canada and Quebec to invest in Elysis, a revolutionary innovation in aluminium smelting that eliminates all direct greenhouse gas emissions. In 2019, the first-ever commercial batch of emissions-free aluminium was used in the 16‑inch MacBook Pro.9 And last year, all iPhone SE enclosures were shipped with Elysis aluminium. All that recycled and low-carbon aluminium adds up to a big step towards becoming carbon neutral.
67%of the aluminium shipped in 2022 came from recycled sources.10
71%reduction in aluminium carbon emissions since 2015 by switching to recycled and low-carbon sources.
Ever wonder about those tiny lines on the side of your phone? They’re easy to overlook, but these antenna lines are crucial to some of the most powerful features in iPhone. Antenna lines have to be made with non-metallic materials so that each antenna can tune to different radio frequencies for Bluetooth, Wi‑Fi and mobile service and allow your device to connect. The antenna lines on iPhone 14 are made with upcycled plastic from bottles that has been transformed into a stronger, higher-performance material.11 It’s just one of the ways we’re reusing materials that would otherwise be considered waste.
Innovating how we get Apple products from manufacturers to you is just one way we’re working to reduce the carbon impact of our products around the world. Last year, we launched Mac Studio, Studio Display and AirPods (3rd generation) leveraging sea transport from suppliers, which is a less carbon-intensive method than air. On average, shipping an item by sea rather than by air reduces transport-related emissions by 95%. We’re also working with our suppliers to implement alternative fuelling methods. In Europe, we piloted a heavy-duty cargo lorry fuelled by hydrogen, an emerging low-carbon fuel for lorries travelling long distances. As we progress towards our 2030 goal, we’re continuing to evaluate more companies that offer carbon-neutral delivery using electric vehicles, including e‑bikes and e‑cars.
Innovation means thinking inside the box.
Every unboxing is surprising, delightful and recyclable .
Apple product packaging is designed to be better for the environment as it’s made and when it’s recycled. We’ve improved the overall recyclability of our packaging by redesigning components like product trays, plastic wrapping and foam cushioning with fibre-based materials that can break down in mixed-paper recycling streams alongside lower-quality materials like cereal boxes. All the more reason to recycle our packaging when you’re done with it.
Zero plastic in packaging by 2025.
The latest innovations in labelling and lamination are helping us address the remaining 4% of plastic in our packaging footprint.12 To eliminate the need for labels on iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Pro packaging, we developed a custom high-resolution printer that can print directly on the back of boxes. Eliminating these labels will avoid an estimated 329 tonnes of plastic and 3,785 tonnes of carbon emissions.13 And a new overprint varnish that replaces the traditional plastic lamination also improves the recyclability of our packaging while maintaining the look and feel you know and love.
Our trees work for a living.
As we eliminate plastic across all our packaging, we’re continuing to source wood fibre from either recycled sources or responsibly managed forests.14 Through partnerships with The Conservation Fund and World Wildlife Fund, we’ve protected or improved the management of more than 1 million acres of working forests in the United States and China. Last year, these forests generated enough responsibly sourced fibre to equal all the virgin wood fibre used in our packaging.15
96%of our overall product packaging is made with recycled and responsibly sourced wood fibre.
1,134tonnes of plastic avoided in 2022 by switching from plastic lamination to overprint varnish.16
Recycled vibes only.
This is what recycled tungsten feels like.
The Taptic Engine creates all the vibrations produced by your iPhone and Apple Watch, from the steady buzz of an incoming phone call to the subtle sensation you feel on your wrist from an Apple Watch notification. These familiar vibrations are made possible by recycled tungsten. And with the help of our disassembly robots, Daisy, Dave and Taz, the tungsten from the Taptic Engine can be recovered and recycled. So every vibration gets us closer to our goal of making new products without depleting the earth’s natural resources.
100%recycled tungsten powers the Taptic Engine in all iPhone 14 models, Apple Watch Series 8, Apple Watch Ultra and Apple Watch SE.17
95%of the tungsten we used in 2022 came from recycled sources.
Daisy can take it from here.
Recycled materials are the building blocks for new devices.
Apple products contain materials that can be used to build new ones. And research from our Material Recovery Lab in Texas helps us reclaim more of these building blocks with innovative tools and technologies. Our team of disassembly robots, Daisy, Dave and Taz, is leading the way in recovering crucial materials like gold, cobalt, tungsten and rare earth elements from recycled devices. These collected materials make it back to the raw materials marketplace so that we, and others, can use recycled materials for the next generation of products. Improving the ways we source and recycle precious materials is one of the many ways we can reduce the carbon impact of our products while working towards our goal of making new products entirely with recycled and renewable materials.
1Tof recycled iPhone components has as much gold and copper as 2,000 tonnes of mined rock.
100%By 2025, we’ll use 100% recycled rare earth elements in all magnets, 100% recycled cobalt in every Apple-designed battery, and 100% recycled tin solder and 100% recycled gold plating on all Apple-designed rigid and flexible printed circuit boards.
Climate action is community action.
Forestry as a force for change.
McIntosh County, Georgia, US
Black landowners are transforming the future of sustainable forestry.
The Conservation Fund, in partnership with Apple, is working to promote sustainable forestry practices and establish climate resilience in Black and Brown communities. Based in McIntosh County, Georgia, McIntosh S.E.E.D. began as an effort to address the impacts of climate change in the coastal county, from severe drought and extreme heat to flooding from intensifying tropical storms and hurricanes. Since then, the programme has expanded to educate and empower landowners with the tools to responsibly manage their land.
In December 2022, twenty landowners and their families visited the McIntosh S.E.E.D. Community Forest in Long County, Georgia, to attend the organisation’s Sustainable Forest & Land Retention programme. Together with their children and grandchildren, landowners met forestry experts to discover and implement sustainable conservation practices while mitigating the effects of climate change on historically overlooked communities.
Even though our approach to designing, making and shipping products with less environmental impact is already bringing us closer to our 2030 goal, there are some carbon emissions we can’t yet avoid. To remove these emissions from the atmosphere and reach our global climate targets, we’re investing in the world’s forests, wetlands and grasslands. With Conservation International and Goldman Sachs, we created the first-of-its-kind Restore Fund to make investments in natural climate solutions while seeking to generate a financial return. Based on our learnings with these projects and the growing global need for more nature-based solutions, Apple announced an expansion to the Restore Fund in 2023. Apple has committed up to $200 million to be managed by Climate Asset Management, a joint venture between HSBC Asset Management and Pollination. This new fund will make investments in sustainable agriculture and other ecosystem assets, and build a pipeline of landscape restoration projects that aim to remove greenhouse gases from the atmosphere. All these efforts combined will help sequester carbon, restore ecosystems, and engage local and Indigenous communities while helping us become carbon neutral.
Mangrove restoration protects both ecosystems and communities.
Across the globe, Apple works with partners to continue the fight against climate change and the devastating effects it can have on the world’s most vulnerable communities. One such community is just 60 miles south of Mumbai, India. Apple, the Applied Environmental Research Foundation (AERF) and Conservation International are working together to protect the coastal area of Alibaug. Alibaug and its surrounding area are home to around 21,000 hectares of mangrove forests, whose natural processes can absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and store it deep in their soil, plants and sediment. Apple and our partners are committed to protecting and empowering these communities by transforming the local economy to one that relies on the safeguarding of the mangrove forest.
Clean energy benefits our company, our communities and the environment.
As we continue our journey to becoming carbon neutral, we’re also focusing our efforts on democratising access to renewable electricity around the world. Since 2019, our Power for Impact programme has funded projects with clear carbon, ecological and social benefits, giving local communities and organisations access to cost-effective energy while we retain the environmental attributes of each project. Solar projects in the Philippines, Thailand, Nigeria, Vietnam, Colombia, Israel and South Africa help provide cost-effective energy to communities facing energy challenges. Apple brought renewable energy to a South African community of over 3,500 households that previously lacked access. And by funding new rooftop solar panel installations at a vocational school as well as a home for senior citizens, we’ve reduced their electricity costs, which will in turn help fund operating costs and expand programmes to serve underserved groups. As we support additional projects in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Nigeria and Zambia, Apple continues to focus on uplifting communities as we pursue our environmental goals.
The fight against climate change is a fight for economic equality.
Detroit, Michigan, US
Climate solutions can help dismantle systemic barriers.
Communities of colour often bear the greatest impacts of climate change. Environmental solutions can help advance equity for these communities. The Impact Accelerator supports Black-, Hispanic/Latinx- and Indigenous-owned businesses at the cutting edge of green technology and clean energy to champion equity and opportunity in the environmental sector. As part of Apple’s Racial Equity and Justice Initiative (REJI), this programme helps combat systemic barriers to opportunity while advancing innovative solutions for communities most affected by climate change.
In 2022, we announced our second class of the Impact Accelerator, which included 16 businesses that are leading environmental services and solutions. These businesses, based across the United States, are driving innovation in energy efficiency, water stewardship, recycling technologies, green building and engineering, and other environmental areas. Many are focused on bringing clean energy, opportunity and vital services to underserved communities that are vulnerable to climate change. By connecting innovators, both in the Impact Accelerator and at Apple, we’re creating more opportunities for progress in our shared goals.
We’re already carbon neutral across our corporate operations and are on the way to making carbon-neutral products by 2030. Learn more about our latest efforts to reduce our remaining carbon footprint, fight climate change and support equity.
Apple has a rigorous programme to ensure the safety of chemicals used in our products. Learn about Apple’s strict standards, detailed toxicological assessments, and methodology for assessing chemicals of concern.
We hold ourselves and our suppliers to the highest standards of labour and human rights, health and safety in the workplace, environmental practices and the responsible sourcing of materials.
