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EPA announces €650,000 funding opportunity for innovative Irish businesses in the Circular Economy

Date released: June 10, 2022

  • The EPA’s Green Enterprise: Innovation for a Circular Economy fund worth €650,000 is now open for applications.
  • A circular economy aims to reduce waste at all stages of the economic cycle and ensure materials are used as efficiently as possible.
  • Circular business models contribute to a climate-neutral, resource-efficient economy.
  • Funding in the range of €50,000 to €100,000 will support development of circular solutions by Irish businesses.
  • The funding is aimed at projects in the areas of food, water and nutrients; packaging, textiles, plastics; construction and buildings; electronics and ICT; batteries and vehicles.


10th June: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today launches its €650,000 funding opportunity for Irish enterprises to innovate, demonstrate and implement new circular economy approaches in their business models, moving away from the ‘Take Make Use Dispose’ economic model. Circular business models appeal to customers and consumers looking for sustainable options and contribute to a climate-neutral, resource-efficient economy. The EPA’s Green Enterprise: Innovation for a Circular Economy fund worth €650,000 is now open for applications.

Applications for project funding in the range of €50,000 to €100,000 are invited. This funding will support Irish businesses to develop circular solutions in product and service design, production and distribution, use of resources including raw materials, and in water, energy and waste reduction.

The fund is aimed at business-ready innovative projects targeting the areas of food, water and nutrients; packaging, textiles, plastics; construction and buildings; electronics and ICT; batteries and vehicles.

Speaking about the Green Enterprise: Innovation for a Circular Economy funding call, Laura Burke, Director General of the EPA said:

“Circular businesses reduce costs and environmental impact by reusing, repairing and recycling materials already in use. These approaches can advance the green transition, accelerate digital transformation and can deliver new jobs and skills as Ireland transitions to a more sustainable economy.
The EPA is inviting business and industry applicants from across Ireland’s economy with business-ready innovative projects targeting our priority areas of food, water and nutrients; packaging, textiles, plastics; construction and buildings; electronics and ICT; and batteries and vehicles”.

The EPA’s Green Enterprise: Innovation for a Circular Economy fund supports Irish enterprises to develop and demonstrate circular economy approaches, designing out waste and pollution and keeping products and materials in use for longer. The types of projects being targeted include:

  • Use of eco-design to develop sustainable products
  • Innovation to reduce the use of raw materials in product manufacturing,
  • Development and implementation of circular production processes (designing out waste, life cycle analysis),
  • Recycling, reuse and repair activities in the business and industry sector;
  • Circular services and business models (to transform consumption patterns, logistics and to foster reuse and repair).

Warren Phelan, Programme Manager, EPA said:

“The Green Enterprise fund is an opportunity for Irish business to access finance in support of their innovative and circular business ideas. In the past the fund has supported business to pilot and test new enterprise activities creating new market opportunities and jobs as well as preventing wasted resources. We encourage businesses that are considering new circular activities to consider the support offered by the Green Enterprise fund”.

Some previously funded circular economy projects include:

  • A project to reduce food waste by using surplus bakery bread as a secondary raw material in brewing beer.
  • An innovative manufacturing process using recyclable, reinforced plastic for producing wind turbine blades and
  • Evaluating the potential to recover and use the biomass generated in fruit and vegetable supply chains to produce new food fibre ingredients.

Further detail on these and other projects are available on the EPA website.

The deadline for submission of proposals for Green Enterprise funding is 19th July 2022. Further information is available on the EPA website.

Contact: Emily Williamson, EPA Media Relations Office, Tel: 053 9170770, Email: media@epa.ie

Notes to Editor

The deadline for submission of proposals for Green Enterprise funding is 19th July 2022.

A circular economy aims to reduce waste at all stages of the economic cycle and ensure materials are used as efficiently as possible. It challenges us to move from the current linear economic model of ‘Take-Make-Use-Dispose’ to a more efficient and low-carbon circular economy. Waste prevention, a central concept of the circular economy, challenges us to review our existing design, production, distribution and consumption of products.

Green Enterprise: Innovation for a Circular Economy has funded twenty-four innovative circular economy projects to date including:

  • An industrial symbiosis project to reduce food waste by using surplus bakery bread as a secondary raw material in brewing beer.
  • An innovative manufacturing process using recyclable, reinforced plastic for producing wind turbine blades.
  • Evaluating the potential to recover and use the biomass generated in fruit and vegetable supply chains to produce new food fibre ingredients.
  • A pilot programme to compare different textile collection systems, supported by a communications campaign.
  • Development of a pallet manufactured from post-consumer plastic.


Further detail on each of these projects are available on the EPA website.

Green Enterprise: Innovation for a Circular Economy is an initiative under the innovation & demonstration pillar of Ireland’s Circular Economy Programme (CEP). The CEP is a Government of Ireland initiative, led by the Environmental Protection Agency. The CEP’s mission is to prevent waste and drive the circular economy in Ireland, through supporting innovation & demonstration, delivering through strategic partnerships and advocacy and communications.

Further information on the Circular Economy Programme and the funding call Green Enterprise: Innovation for a Circular Economy.