The Spanish Association of Wall and Floor Tile Manufacturers (ASCER), with financing from the Generalitat Valenciana, is launching a campaign titled ‘The Secret Ingredient’ in order to shine a spotlight on the attributes and values of the European ceramics industry, such as its respect for the environment.

Ceramics are, by their very nature and due to their lifecycle, sustainable materials. The raw materials which make up the ceramic pieces come from the earth and, together with the water and firing fuel, comprise a natural, high-quality product. What’s more, European manufacturers comply with strict quality and sustainability standards, implementing the latest available technologies to improve energy efficiency and reduce environmental impacts, demonstrating a commitment to efficient resource use throughout the production process and reusing materials. Some widespread measures in the European ceramics industry include:

• Replacement of energy vectors with those which produce fewer emissions in the stages where it is technically feasible: use of electricity from renewable sources, electric vehicles, high-efficiency cogeneration, natural gas in kilns, etc.
• Life cycle analysis (LCA) to optimise manufacturing processes and guide companies in the reduction of environmental impacts throughout the product life cycle.
• Implementation of voluntary eco-labels such as DAP, which offer precise and transparent information about the environmental impact of a product throughout its life cycle.
• Residual heat recovery from kilns for use in other stages of the process, the use of ever more efficient burners and kilns, and high-efficiency cogeneration systems which provide 20% savings on primary energy.
• Reuse of sludges and aqueous suspensions, drastically reducing water consumption, recycling and reusing 100% of wastewater in a closed cycle and achieving zero discharge.
• Reuse of 100% of clay waste before firing and recovering a large proportion of fired shards.
• Exhaustive dust emissions control in the storage and transport of raw materials.
• A growing number of companies with ISO 17889-1 certification.
• Drastic reduction in material usage thanks to the use of digital printing.

The fact is, for decades, the European ceramics industry has been implementing energy efficiency measures and the best technologies available for reducing CO₂ emissions with the aim of achieving net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. For example, thanks to these measures, the Spanish industry has reduced CO₂ emissions per tonne of fired product by 61% since 1980.

In addition to respect for the environment, with this new campaign, the industry is seeking to showcase all of the values, attributes and qualities which make European ceramics unique: respect for labour rights, attention to detail, investment in innovation, tradition and cultural heritage, and local roots. Throughout, it does so by making an emotional appeal to our sense of belonging, to our way of doing and creating things which is aligned with the principles which govern European society.

The campaign is composed of a main audiovisual piece with emotional content telling the story of how European ceramics are present in every moment of our lives, accompanying people from the perspective of the Secret Ingredient, where we underscore our tradition, customs and history, our social and environmental commitment and our respect for people. We do so by constantly shining the spotlight on European ceramics and raising awareness about what makes these ceramics unique materials: respect.

In addition to the main video, clips have also been produced to show ‘what lies behind’ European ceramics, as told by workers in the industry – specialists who provide us with more detail on each specific area of European ceramics production – opening the door to their experience and knowledge, and how each of them provides a ‘secret ingredient’: respect for the environment, respect for people, respect for ideas, and respect for customers.

All of the campaign videos in their different language versions are available on the landing page thesecretingredient.info, which is home to all of the campaign content and materials.