Dutch recycling consortium GBN-AGR is now officially certified to recycle end-of-use synthetic turf.

GBN-AGR operates a recycling plant near the port of Amsterdam. The company has been formed by an alliance between infrastructure company Strukton and synthetic turf supply and installation companies Sport & Leisure Group (Domo Sports Grass), CSC Sport, GreenFields, Edelgrass, and Antea Group.

The recycler uses a so-called “wet process” to clean synthetic turf carpet and to separate the different components.

With operations having commenced earlier this year, certification that GBN-AGR works according to defined processes and adheres to all steps defined is a vital step in the quality assurance process. “It is important that we are transparent and that our clients know upfront how their old synthetic turf will be processed, as well as them receiving confirmation the old turf has been processed the way it was intended,” says Director Eric van Roekel. “We are able to prove how many old synthetic turf fields we have accepted for processing, that they have been processed, and how much raw material we collected at the end of the process.”

The certification process is conducted by quality assurance institute Kiwa. Jan Klapwijk, Unit Manager at Kiwa, explains: “The certification is brand new, as the plant of GBN-AGR is the first synthetic turf recycling plant in the Netherlands. In the absence of any other synthetic turf recycler operating in the Netherlands, we had to define a new way to certify recyclers of synthetic turf. Therefore, we opted to write down all commitments GBN-AGR makes and the processes they promise they will follow. Compliance will be established twice a year.”

Van Roekel points out that the plant has sufficient capacity to process all synthetic turf that comes available in the Netherlands every year. “Over the past few months, we have generated sufficient stock to run the plant already. If needs be, we can increase our processing capacity or opt to start working in shifts,” he assures us.

With over 200 synthetic turf football fields being renovated in the Netherlands per annum, GBN-AGR is assured of a sufficient supply for the coming years.