Vittoria opens world's first carbon neutral tyre manufacturing facility

Vittoria has announced the opening of a carbon-neutral manufacturing facility that will be used in the production of their cotton tubular and clincher tyres. The expansion of the Vittoria Tyres Thailand (VTT) site will see it grow from 36,000sqm to 51,000sqm with the new 10,000sqm facility employing 200 staff.

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The brand has said: "The new facility will be dedicated to the production of premium cotton bicycle tires used by professional and amateur cyclists around the world, such as Vittoria Corsa PRO – the most advanced road bicycle tire, winner of the Giro d’Italia, Tour de France, Vuelta a España, World Championship and many other WorldTour-level competitions."

This facility marks a first for the bike industry with Vittoria claiming to operate as carbon neutral throughout the tyre manufacturing process. This has been achieved by an electronic vulcanisation process, a solar roof to the facility, running on renewable energy, paperless operations, and electric automated guided vehicles. The company also go on to say there is a reliance on carbon credits to reach its carbon neutrality target.

This is something that other brands, such as Trek have called out in recent times, calling for carbon crediting to be discounted as a method of reaching true carbon neutrality. You can find out more about the environmental commitment of Trek in their latest environmental report here.

Read more: Trek releases 2023 sustainability report, removing carbon offsetting from its carbon footprint calculations

Vittoria is not just making these claims on carbon neutrality, the new facility has been certified by Climate Impact Partners which have evaluated the new facility to ensure it does meet the specific criteria to be considered carbon neutral.

The new Vittoria production facility will be used in the production of what Vittoria is heralding as their most sustainable tyre ever, a gravel tyre set for release in spring 2024 and will be made exclusively from renewable or recycled materials.

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Vittoria

Vittoria is an Italian bicycle tyre manufacturer. The company produces over seven million tyres yearly for a wide range of cyclists, from road racers and commuters to BMX riders and mountain bikers.