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Supporting the bioeconomy . ISCC certified

STABILO products linked to ISCC PLUS certified bio-based plastic

Biowaste instead of crude oil!

At STABILO, we source ISCC PLUS certified bio-based plastic under the mass balance approach. This is great because it replaces fossil fuels like crude oil or natural gas in plastics with bio-circular materials. Bio-circular material is biowaste, e.g. used cooking oil or wood waste from the paper or forestry industries. Bio-based feedstocks use much less CO2 than fossil fuels. This is good for our climate and reduces the carbon footprint of our products (Our product carbon footprints are evaluated by our partner myclimate). There are no changes to the product itself. Its appearance and quality are exactly as before.

You are supporting the sustainable transformation by buying these products!

This is where STABILO is already sourcing ISCC certified bio-based plastic:
Fineliner STABILO dr!ver

STABILO dr!ver

To the overview
STABILO point 88

STABILO point 88

To the overview
STABILO Pen 68

STABILO Pen 68

To the overview
STABILO Pen 68 brush

STABILO Pen 68 brush

To the overview
STABILO Pen 68 metallic

STABILO Pen 68 metallic

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STABILO Creative Tips

STABILO Creative Tips

To the overview
STABILO point 88 Mini

STABILO point 88 Mini

To the overview
STABILO Pen 68 Mini

STABILO Pen 68 Mini

To the overview
Logo ISCC

Strong partners with powerful ideas!

The acronym ISCC stands for International Sustainability and Carbon Certification. It is an independent multi-stakeholder initiative with various interest groups from the fields of R&D, education, industry, agriculture and the public sector. At the same time, ISCC is a leading international certification system for the circular economy and bioeconomy. ISCC PLUS certification is a voluntary certification scheme for, among others, plastics, rubber, adhesives and chemical substances. ISCC’s objective is to promote sustainable, deforestation-free and climate-friendly supply chains to protect forests, carbon-rich soils and biodiversity.
More information on ISCC

What does the ISCC PLUS label tell you?

1) The percentage is the proportion of certified bio-based plastic that was sourced for the production of the pen body using the mass balance approach. The calculation does not include parts that are not made of plastic and/or do not belong to the pen body, e.g., metal clips, ink, ink reservoirs and nibs.

2) The circle of three leaves symbolizes the raw material category of the certified material as bio-circular. Which means, that it can be traced back to biological waste and residues (e.g., tall oil and cellulose from the sustainable paper industry, or used cooking oil). The material is therefore not competing with food or feed, and that includes in terms of acreage. 

3) This shows which product component is certified. In the case of STABILO products, this is the plastic of the pen body including cap. 

4) “Mass balance approach” indicates that the amount of certified bio-based plastic attributed to the product may possibly not be physically detectable in it. In the next section, you will learn why this is better than it sounds.

Understanding the mass balance approach:

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Green Energy Production

A proven concept!

You are probably already familiar with a comparable principle in conjunction with green electricity: When you stick the plug into the socket, you don’t know which power plant has produced the electricity that is now flowing through your cables. But the more fossil energy is replaced by green energy and fed to the grid the better it is for the climate. You can influence this by buying green energy.

The same principle is used, for example, in the case of certified cocoa. Take a look by clicking on the button below. You can also watch how ISCC itself explains the principle.
Rainforest AllianceISCC on YouTube

FAQs

If you have more questions, please feel free to write us: together@stabilo.com
A comparable system to the mass balance approach, you probably know well, is green energy. There is an electricity grid through which all electricity flows, regardless of how it has been generated. However, customers can only purchase as much green electricity as has been produced. The increasing demand for green electricity ensures that more and more green electricity is being produced. 

The increasing demand for green electricity ensures that more and more green electricity is being produced. The mass balance approach offers a solution for gradually replacing fossil fuels with renewable resources. 

Fossil and bio-based resources are processed together, i.e. mixed, in the same process. The amounts of the various raw materials are accurately recorded and monitored, from feedstock to finished product. 

Using this accounting method, we can guarantee that only the equivalent amount of products are certified as bio-based material as bio-circular raw material was used in the manufacturing of plastic. It is guaranteed, that the bio-circular material is sourced and used within the supply chain. However, we cannot say how much bio-based material is physically contained in an individual product. 

In the case of plastics manufacture, the amount of bio-circular material is traced throughout the entire value chain and attributed to the corresponding amount of feedstock (plastic pellets). This can then be used to produce certified end products (pens).

An independent certification body guarantees compliance with all ISCC PLUS guidelines and the monitoring of the supply chain. Every element of the supply chain must be ISCC PLUS certified, i.e., recognize and comply with the established requirements. This is verified in an annual audit. 

As a result, we cannot say how much bio-based material is contained in an individual product, but we can guarantee that only as many products are certified as bio-based material was used. 

The mass balance approach is not only used in the industrial and energy supply sectors but also in the food industry (e.g., certified cacao).
Fossil resources can be reduced step by step and adapted to the availability of bio-circular materials. Currently, there is still a shortage of bio-circular resources and recyclable plastic waste. However, the demand for alternatives to conventional plastic is growing steadily. The mass balance system allows fluctuations to be compensated while making large volumes of plastic linked to renewable resources available. The system therefore makes bio-based plastics suitable for mass production and enables a realistic, step-by-step transformation process.

The material and product quality remain unchanged and are not impaired:

Because of the way that bio-based resources, which would normally occur as waste, are treated in this process, the plastic pellets produced have the same properties as conventional plastic.

Many other bio-based plastics have very different properties to conventional plastic. This affects the processability of the material and the characteristics of the end product. It can therefore be difficult to find a suitable substitute.

Recycling plastic, comes mainly from municipal collections and when it is processed mechanically and treated, can contain contaminants. To guarantee product quality and safety, the raw material has to be well monitored and tested. This is a very laborious task if large volumes of plastic need to be processed.

Existing production systems and supply chains can continue to be used and will then be adapted slowly. There is no need to build new production lines or maintain separate parallel supply chains.
At STABILO, we also process plastics linked to biomass and/or biological waste and residue materials that has been manufactured in separate production systems (e.g., for the STABILO Grow). But here too, it is important to us that the biological resource is not in competition with food production. At present, these materials are not yet sufficiently available in the quality that we need for our products to be able to continually manufacture a high-volume product like point 88, for example. And this is exactly where bio-based plastic certified under the mass balance system offers an excellent alternative on the transformation journey.
ISCC stands for “International Sustainability and Carbon Certification”. ISCC is an independent multi-stakeholder initiative with a wide range of members (companies, associations, NGOs, research establishments etc.) as well as a leading international certification system.

Its objective is to promote sustainable, traceable, climate-friendly supply chains to make more efficient use of resources, protect biodiversity, and reduce the dependency of fossil-based materials.

Through ISCC PLUS certification, STABILO ensures that the volume of certified materials used in the production process and the certified materials indicated in the product are in the correct proportion. This is monitored and verified along the entire supply chain.

Compliance with the guidelines is checked by an independent external certification body (e.g., TÜV, SGS) and audited on an annual basis.
In the industrial sector, the ISCC PLUS certification scheme is recognized by other sustainability standards like the German “Blue Angel”, Dutch Green Deal, and Textile Exchange under its “2025 Sustainable Cotton Challenge”. Over 40,000 certificates have already been issued in more than 100 different countries.

Some renowned brands like BRITA water filters, NUK, Nestle for KitKat, Mondelez for Cadbury and Philadelphia, Bugaboo, Philips appliances, Hasbro for PlayDoh, Magnum, MAM, Fielmann etc. are already using the material and associated label.
The material itself can be recycled again and has the same recycling properties as conventional plastic. Waste occurring in our manufacturing process is ground down directly back into pellets and returned to the production process. 

However, unfortunately the STABILO end products in this material (e.g., point 88, Pen 68, dr!ver) can still not be recycled. 

To ensure functionality and safety, the pen components must be permanently joined. This means that at the end of the product service life the cartridge and residual ink cannot be removed or only with great difficulty. These materials are problematic for the recycling process because they cannot be turned into pellets. We are continuing to work on a possible solution to this problem.
The proportion of ISCC PLUS certified bio-based plastic is attributed to the cap and body of the STABILO products (mass balance). It does not include parts that are not made of plastic and/or do not belong to the pen body, e.g., metal clips, ink, ink cartridges and nibs.

In the STABILO dr!ver, the soft grip zone and added coloration (so that the plastic is black and not transparent) are not made from the ISCC PLUS certified material, which reduces the proportion from 100% to 94%.

For products from the STABILO point 88 and Pen 68 families, only the added coloration of the plastic reduces the total proportion of ISCC PLUS certified material from 100% to 96%. 96% is the minimum proportion that is attributed. As the proportion varies slightly from color to color we decided to communicate the minimum allocated amount.
Logo STABILO Together

We keep working on our CO2 emissions!

As a family company, STABILO's focal point on the next generations is always important, and the greatest challenge of this and the next generation is climate change.

“STABILO Together” is our sustainability initiative, which we started in 2020. Our first focus topic until 2025 was our Carbon Footprint. STABILO makes its contribution to transformation and is constantly working on reducing the companies carbon footprint. For our milestone in 2025, we will probably achieve a reduction of 50% versus 2020 (according to own projection).

Join us in our journey and learn how you can contribute yourself.
STABILO Sustainability