Mattel: First Certified Carbon Neutral Toy Line

Mattel, Inc. has announced an expansion of its sustainable product offering with the debut of new products from its popular MEGA and Matchbox brands. The expanded offering is in line with Mattel’s goal to achieve 100% recycled, recyclable or bio-based plastic materials in all its products and packaging by 2030.

MEGA, the global leader in preschool construction toys, is helping to create a brighter, more sustainable future with MEGA BLOKS Green Town, the first-ever toy line available at mass retail to be certified CarbonNeutral. Just in time for Earth Month, four new MEGA BLOKS Green Town building sets support a greener way to play for little builders ages 1 and up in the following ways:Each playset, like the Build & Learn Eco House™ and the Grow & Protect Farm, is made from specifically a minimum of 56% plant-based materials – and a minimum of 26% International Sustainability & Carbon Certification (ISCC*) certified bio-circular plastics (mass balance approach).

Each product is certified CarbonNeutral by Natural Capital Partners, the leading experts on carbon neutrality and climate finance. To achieve the CarbonNeutral®product certification, MEGA purchased carbon offsets (less than 500 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalents) from the Darkwood Forests Conservation project in Canada.

Packaging is created with 100% Forest Stewardship Council^® (FSC)-certified paper or paperboard, plus soy-based inks and water-based varnishes to enhance recyclability.

Each set is designed to help teach green behaviors through play patterns, like waste sorting, using electric transport, protecting honey bees and choosing renewable energy sources. Green Town building sets are available for pre-order on Amazon.com and have achieved the e-tailers Climate Pledge Friendly label.

In 2021, Matchbox announced Driving Toward a Better Future, its product roadmap to make all Matchbox die-cast cars, playsets and packaging with 100% recycled, recyclable or bio-based plastic materials by 2030, in line with Mattel’s corporate goal. Illustrating these principles, Mattel is releasing its highly anticipated Matchbox Tesla Roadster, its first die-cast vehicle made from 99% recycled materials and certified CarbonNeutral. It is now available as a pre-sale item on Mattel Creations.

This year, Matchbox is introducing more products designed to have less impact on the environment and better reflect the real world, while also encouraging greener play patterns, including:

• New electric vehicle (EV) die-cast multi-packs featuring an expanded assortment of EVs from brands like BMW, Nissan, Honda among others.
• A new Recycling Truck made from 80% ISCC-certified bio-circular plastic (mass balance approach).
• Popular Action Drivers™ playsets using at least 40% ISCC-certified bio-circular plastic (mass balance approach).
• More products designed for recyclability, such as incorporating easy-to-remove and recycle e-waste electronics in all Action Drivers playsets and the new Recycling Truck.
• Video content to help parents educate their kids on the benefits of EVs.

“At Mattel, we are focused on developing innovative products and packaging that are better for our planet by integrating more sustainable materials and principles of product stewardship and circular design,” said Pamela Gill-Alabaster, Head of Global Sustainability at Mattel. “These new products from MEGA and Matchbox demonstrate our commitment to our 2030 goal to achieve 100% recycled, recyclable or bio-based plastic materials in all our products and packaging and to creating a more sustainable future for the next generation.”

Mattel is incorporating certified renewable polymers from SABIC’s TRUCIRCLE program across its product offerings, starting with MEGA Bloks Green Town and select Matchbox products. Mattel is the first toy company to work with SABIC, a global leader in the chemicals industry, in a mass balance approach — designed to return second-generation renewable feedstock into high-quality new plastic applications.

MEGA and Matchbox are also part of Mattel PlayBack, a toy takeback program launched in U.S., Canada, France, Germany, and the UK in 2021 designed to recover and reuse valuable materials from old Mattel toys.

The expanded offering announced today adds to a growing list of launches that ladder up to Mattel’s corporate goal to use 100% recycled, recyclable or bio-based plastic materials in all products and packaging by 2030. Other products include Barbie Loves the Ocean, its first fashion doll line made from recycled ocean-bound plastic; Fisher-Price Rock-a-Stack and Fisher-Price® Baby’s First Blocks, made from bio-based plastics; UNO® Nothin’ But Paper, the first fully recyclable UNO® deck without cellophane packing materials; and three previously released MEGA Bloks sets made from bio-based plastics.