Linde

Grade Summary

Even if Linde is still among ChemScore’s top ten, the company has suffered the biggest point loss in this year’s ranking – six points, which means going from a C+ to a C and slipping from being ranked…

Linde produces/uses 4 highly hazardous substances – 2 SIN List chemicals, 1 PIC, and 1 HHP – none of which are included on the EU’s REACH Candidate List. None of these highly hazardous substances are either banned or severely restricted, with set dates when production needs to cease (no Authorisation List substances, and no POPs). The company produces no persistent chemicals.

Please note that there is no available data for the 50 percent of the company’s production that takes place outside of the EU and US. Lower EU/US production means higher uncertainty with regard to the total production of hazardous chemicals, which will have a negative impact on the company’s score in this category.

Linde has a method in place to screen and assess the sustainability of its products but does not include the intrinsic hazards of ingredients in the screening process. Neither does it exclude substances with toxic properties from its new products. Linde actively markets safer alternatives on its own website but not on ChemSec Marketplace. The company does not have any true circular products, processes or innovations. Linde does not use bio-based resources. Nor does it source or treat recycled materials in a sustainable way, which is one of the key elements of a circular economy. Linde is not actively reducing the hazardous waste it generates.

The British company does not produce only sustainable products, and it does not have a timed phase-out strategy for hazardous substances that go beyond regulatory compliance. It shares chemical safety information on its website and is following a credible code of conduct standard. Linde did not respond to ChemSec’s attempts to communicate around its ChemScore ranking and it does not share any information about what kind of chemicals it produces in regions with low regulatory demands for transparency (e.g. Asia). Linde does not have a circular economy program in place, and it does not have objective and measurable circular economy targets.