Take the circular route to curbing over-production

Take for example a broken smartphone: the device can be repaired, sold to secondary markets if outdated or donated to other consumers for reuse. If none of these options is possible, the manufacturer could produce a new smartphone from some of the old parts. If remanufacturing is not an option, smartphones should be recycled. Only once all the above possibilities have been exhausted should the smartphone be sent to landfills. Many countries have passed legislation to support increased recycling efforts. For example, the Minnesota Electronics Recycling Act imposes strict collection and recycling objectives on producers as a percentage of their total sales. Companies have also adopted measures to make their products last longer. Fairphone is designing smartphones that are made from recycled materials and can easily be repaired. The company also recovers e-waste in the EU where it is based and partners with organizations that collect e-waste in African countries that lack recycling infrastructure.

In contrast, there is a lack of business models for reusing and recycling the waste produced when supply exceeds demand due to a lack of planning or a sudden decrease in demand. Excess inventory is instead destroyed, before reaching consumers.