Dalton—Tarkett just announced a new, circular solution for its Powerbond hybrid carpet. Leveraging the power of mushrooms, any Powerbond returned to Tarkett’s ReStart take-back and recycling program will be transformed into biobased raw materials for use in future Tarkett Sports products set to be introduced in the coming months.
Developed in 1967, Powerbond was the first hybrid carpet flooring to be designed to combine the comfort of carpet with the performance of resilient flooring. In 2022, Powerbond RS became the world’s first Certified Asthma & Allergy Friendly soft-surface flooring, in an effort to contribute to better indoor air quality in classrooms, corporate offices, senior living communities and more.
“Recognized for its unmatched durability and performance, Powerbond has been a cornerstone of Tarkett’s innovation portfolio for decades,” said Roxane Spears, vice president of sustainability. “Reclaiming it after years—sometimes decades—of use and converting it into a biobased raw material isn’t just progress, it’s breakthrough. This is what it looks like when we back up our values with real, sustained action.”
According to the company, its new Powerbond recycling innovation serves as a powerful follow-up to last year’s announcement of its partnership with Mycocycle—the biotech company using mushroom root systems (mycelia) to break down construction waste.
“At Tarkett Sports, innovation is driving both performance and sustainability,” said Eddy Schmitt, president and CEO, Tarkett Sports. “This research initiative allows us to turn reclaimed materials of one of our companies into high-performance products for another one. It’s a powerful example of how we can scale circularity through shared expertise and a united commitment to doing what’s right. Across Tarkett, we are committed to investing the necessary resources to give reclaimed materials another life.”
With eight ReStart flooring recycling centers across the globe, including one here, Tarkett has collected more than 124,000 tons of flooring through ReStart over the past 14 years. ReStart is now up and running in a total of 29 countries across the world. The program has also increased its North America collections by 40% in 2024, recycling 2.1 million pounds of old flooring.
“Tarkett has a long legacy of investing in innovation—deliberate, sustained investment that fuels real change,” said Winn Everhart, president and CEO, Tarkett North America. “While strong partnerships have always helped us bring our ideas to life, finding a partner within the Tarkett family of companies makes this collaboration especially meaningful. Together, we’re advancing a shared vision for manufacturing durable, high-performance products designed with circularity in mind.”