Reducing the Ecological Footprint—State of Practice and the Transition to the Circular Economy in Manufacturing Companies in Sweden

This paper presents findings from an interview study conducted in seven different industrial manufacturing companies in Sweden. The purpose was to understand how industrial manufacturing companies currently work with the reduction in their environmental footprint and the transition into the circular economy. The operational sustainability and circular economy actions in the companies were investigated in relation to the sustainability reporting of the companies, particularly those aligned with the Greenhouse Gas Protocol scopes 1–3. The results showed that the reductions in Scopes 1 and 2 were well underway, while circular economy actions remained at an early stage, with most initiatives still being implemented on a limited scale. The paper discusses the reasons behind this. A key finding is that both corporate reporting and the scientific literature rarely differentiate between CO2 reductions achieved through operational sustainability actions and those resulting from circular economy strategies.