Shopping on Adevinta’s second-hand online marketplaces saved a potential 28.2 million tonnes CO2 emissions in 2021, according to new report

28.2 million tonnes of CO2 emissions is equivalent to the annual carbon footprint of 4.6 million European citizens¹

Barcelona and Oslo, 14 December 2022: 28.2 million tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions were potentially saved thanks to second-hand trade through the online marketplaces operated by Adevinta, according to the Second Hand Effect 2021 report (SHE), published today. The report was developed in collaboration with IVL, the Swedish Environmental Research Institute, and examines the potential environmental benefits users generate by buying and selling second-hand goods on Adevinta online marketplaces.

The report shows how much CO2 and materials (plastic, steel and aluminium) have potentially been saved through second-hand trade on participating marketplaces. The calculations are based on the hypothesis that keeping a second-hand item in use, avoids the production of a new item and disposal of the old one, which translates into potential savings of CO2 emissions as well as plastic, aluminium and steel.

Potential combined savings by Adevinta users:

• 28.2 million tonnes of CO2 emissions, equivalent to 81.4 million one way flights between New York City and Barcelona
• 1.53 million tonnes of plastic, equivalent to 47 billion 1.5L plastic bottles
• 9.6 million tonnes of steel, equivalent to 209,687 km of railroad track
• 0.93 million tonnes of aluminium, equivalent to 36.5 billion cell phones

Antoine Jouteau, CEO of Adevinta: “As a company operating second-hand marketplaces, Adevinta is at the forefront of the circular economy and encourages more conscious consumption patterns. Second-hand is no longer seen as second-best and I believe we can no longer stick to a linear economy today. The people using our platforms know they can save money when they buy second-hand and deliver environmental benefits at the same time. They want to play a direct personal role in reducing emissions and the use of resources, and in turn support a more circular economy.”

Participating marketplaces:

• Leboncoin, France
• eBay Kleinanzeigen, Germany
• Milanuncios, Spain
• Subito, Italy
• Marktplaats and 2dehands/2ememain, Netherlands and Belgium
• Jófogás, Hungary,
• Willhaben, Austria
• OLX Brasil, Brazil

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¹*[World bank data shows that emissions for Europe are 6.1 MT per person.
Therefore 28.2 million tonnes is equivalent to more than 4.6 millions europeans (2019 data source)]