Neveplast has been one of the big success stories in dry slope skiing worldwide over the 25 years since it was established. Still a family run business based in Bergamo, it continues to ensure its products are made in Bergamo, but has an ever greater focus on sustainability.

“A green soul has always been part of Neveplast’s DNA and over time it has reviewed its way of operating and doing business to comply with growing environmental regulations with increasingly eco-compatible behaviour,” says Niccolò Bertocchi CEO of Neveplast, adding, “In recent years, plastic has been subject to a sort of demonization. However, it remains a fundamental material in many sectors. It is an intelligent and often irreplaceable material. The problems, from an environmental point of view, are rather related to its management. We at Neveplast, in such a delicate historical moment for the environment, believe that engaging in a policy of active responsibility does not only mean focusing the production of our products on ‘green’ choices, but making sure that it becomes a component of our corporate identity”

Neveplast argues its products are environmentally responsible in several ways. Firstly the materials don’t dispersed into the environment at any point and second they are both made of recycled material and can themselves be recycled at the end of their working life. A fourth positive is that the dry slope systems do not require the use of electricity or water, except in the case of very long slopes where small amounts of water are needed for lubrication. Then the fact that many Neveplast installations are located in cities means people can use them to promote health and fitness and  access them on public transport, compared to often needing to drive or fly long distances to ski at conventional areas.

In 2022 Neveplast obtained ISCC PLUS certification (International Sustainability & Carbon Certification) for their NP30 FREESKI SUSTAINABLE product and the company are renewing the certification this year. An active promoter of a circular economy, the international standard ISCC aims to encourage the production and sustainable use, from an environmental, social and economic point of view, of all types of biomass in the various supply chains.

Neveplast’s renewable plastic is managed using a mass balance system throughout the value chain. This means that the connection between incoming and outgoing material for each stage of the process is ensured through certification. For every ton of ISCC certified renewable plastic put into production, an equivalent amount of finished product can be declared as ISCC Certified.

“Our goal, with a view to increasingly green development, is to find the right balance between renewable sources and secondary raw materials with increasingly sustainable products. Two years ago we launched a new version of our flagship product for ski slopes NP30FreeskiSustanable with the project being carried out in Stockholm,” added Niccolò Bertocchi, adding, “And the progress in terms of environmental sustainability doesn’t stop there. ”This year we will build a tubing and drifting plant in Norway with 90% economically sustainable materials. It is a new compound developed by us and produced 100% in Italy. In fact, all our products are made in Italy and are produced by subcontractors located within a 50-kilometre radius of our headquarters, giving a very short supply chain that allows us to monitor quality, customise products very quickly and adapt the products we manufacture based on customer needs.”

Neveplast also completed carbon footprint calculations in line with ISO 14064-1 for 2021. The study measures the total amount of greenhouse gas emissions produced, directly and indirectly, by the activities carried out by an organisation in a given period of time.

Through an analysis of the results of this study, Neveplast aims to reduce the value of CO₂ emitted into the environment. This activity represents the first step of a broader Neveplast strategy in terms of sustainability: the long-term goal is to ensure increasingly important standards in environmental and social terms by responsibly contributing to the containment of waste and the achievement of the goals (Sustainable Development Goals) set by the United Nations in the 2030 Agenda on climate change.