Why Circular Procurement is Key to Future-Proofing your Supply Chain

When people talk about the Circular Economy, they often picture recycling bins, reusable packaging, or second-hand products. But behind the scenes, the real enablers of circularity sit much earlier in the chain, with procurement and supply chain professionals.  

These teams have enormous influence over how products are designed, made, moved, and eventually recovered. That makes circular procurement one of the most powerful tools for future-proofing a business.  

What Do We Mean by Circular Procurement? 

Traditional procurement is largely focused on buying the right goods and services at the right price, quality, and time. It’s about enabling the business to function efficiently and profitably. 

 Circular procurement goes a step further. It looks at the entire lifecycle of what’s being bought and asks: 

• Can this product be repaired, reused, or remanufactured? 

• Is it designed to last? 

• Will it generate waste, or help avoid it? 

• What happens to it at the end of use? 

 Instead of buying based on short-term value, circular procurement focuses on long-term outcomes – economic, environmental, and social. 

Why it Matters More than Ever 

The risks facing global supply chains are increasing: 

• Resource scarcity and price volatility 

• Disruptions due to climate impacts or geopolitical events 

• Stricter regulations on human rights, due diligence, and emissions 

• Pressure from customers and investors for credible sustainability action 

Circular procurement helps organisations build resilience. It does this by shortening supply loops, finding value in what would previously have been waste, and improving supplier relationships by focusing on outcomes rather than just cost. 

As regulations like the EU Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive come into play, understanding your extended supply chain, how and where goods are made, is no longer optional. Procurement teams are being asked not just to buy well, but to buy responsibly. 

Procurement and Supply Chain: At the Heart of Circular Change 

While procurement and supply chain management (SCM) have often been seen as separate functions, they are deeply interconnected. Procurement brings in the materials and services that feed the supply chain. SCM ensures they move efficiently from supplier to customer. 

Profitability Meets Purpose 

It’s important to recognise that this isn’t just about compliance or environmental good intentions. Circular procurement can directly support profitability. Procurement decisions typically influence between 40% and 80% of an organisation’s spending. That means they can shape how money is spent and how value is created or lost. 

Circular models like product-as-a-service, shared ownership, and remanufacturing open new cost structures and revenue streams. Procurement teams are ideally placed to identify these opportunities and negotiate outcomes that align business goals with sustainability targets. 

In Summary

Circular procurement isn’t a bolt-on to your current role, it’s an evolution of it. For procurement and supply chain professionals, this is a moment of transformation. The same skills you’ve always used; analysis, negotiation, relationship-building, cost control, are now being applied to bigger goals: reducing waste, increasing resilience, creating shared value. 

Take the Next Step: Deepen Your Expertise

Thanks for reading “Why Circular Procurement is Key to Future-Proofing your Supply Chain”. If you’re ready to turn insight into action, join our Circular Economy Deep Dive: Procurement and Supply course.

This 4-week online programme is designed specifically for procurement and supply chain professionals who want to lead change within their organisations. You’ll gain:

• Strategic tools and frameworks to embed circularity in sourcing and supplier decisions

• Practical insights on lifecycle thinking, risk mitigation, and innovation

• Peer-reviewed resources developed in partnership with the Ellen MacArthur Foundation

• A circular procurement toolkit ready to use in your day-to-day role

Find out more

Request Brochure

If you want to make your supply chain more future-ready, and more future-proof, this is the time to get involved.