In January 2025, I was shocked when I looked at our Power BI sustainability report.

Two numbers immediately stood out:

1. We had used 12,000 garbage bags in 2024.
2. During peak periods, the garbage truck collected several hundred kilograms of waste from us every week.

And this was despite having dozens of selective waste collection points across our facility.

The issue kept bothering me because we had already placed a very strong emphasis on selective waste collection.

So one Sunday, I personally went “dumpster diving” — collecting and analyzing the contents of our waste bins.

The next day, we held a staff training session focused on waste management. I brought the previous day’s garbage into the meeting room and emptied it onto a large plastic sheet.

Within minutes, we reached two very clear conclusions:

1. Even though we provided selective waste collection, visitors did not consistently separate waste correctly. Selective bins contained mixed waste, while recyclable materials often ended up in general waste bins.
2. A significant portion of our garbage bags were still perfectly usable when thrown away.

In other words:
our selective collection system was far less effective than we believed — and, painful as it is to admit, we were wasting garbage bags as well.

At that point, my mind went back to 1992, when I wrote my MBA thesis on the then-revolutionary concept of Business Process Reengineering (BPR).

 

 

The essence of BPR is simple:
learn to think outside the box and eliminate the “ugly worms of habit.”

So we started redesigning the entire process.

We immersed ourselves in circular economy thinking, added a small technological innovation, and eventually achieved what felt like a small miracle:

With just 10–15 minutes of additional daily work, the real waste generated by 1,500 visitors now fits into a single 220-liter bag.

So what changed?

1. Instead of placing garbage bags inside large bins, we reversed the logic:
   we brought large enough collection containers to the garbage bags and emptied waste into them. Only bags that were already damaged or worn out were discarded.
2. We re-sorted the collected waste on a specially designed sorting table into 23 different categories, of which only ONE was landfill waste. This means that 22 different material types were guaranteed to find a new „purpose of life” and re-enter the circular economy.

1. We purchased a used industrial compactor. The remaining mixed waste is compressed, achieving an average volume reduction of 70–90%.
2. The entire system requires only 10–15 minutes of extra work per day.
3. We also introduced a new KPI:
   “Landfill waste generated per 1,000 visitors.”

We launched the system last April, and now — one year later — we finally see the full annual results:

• Garbage bag usage decreased by 80%
  • Lanfill waste volume decreased by 90%
  • Our new KPI reached: 40 kg of waste per 1,000 visitors

The graph below shows the numbers, the 23 waste categories, and a few images of the new process.

Sometimes sustainability does not require expensive miracles.

Sometimes it simply requires questioning old habits.

This process is scalable, can be freely adopted by companies of any size. Like everything else, this also begins with the right mindset….

 

„What makes biogas particularly important is that it is not simply an energy technology, but a complete circular economic system connecting waste management, renewable energy production, agricultural nutrient recovery, and carbon reduction.”

This was one of the key messages shared by Anita Simon, Deputy CEO responsible for Sustainability and Circular Economy at ALTEO, at the Budapest Biogas Summit 2026. She presented how ALTEO has transformed biogas operations into a fully traceable, audited, and economically sustainable circular energy model.

Food industry rejects, expired products, agricultural by-products, and organic waste streams can all be safely processed within a controlled system, transforming waste into renewable electricity, heat, biomethane, and agricultural nutrients.

Companies – especially retail chains and manufacturers – are increasingly making decisions based on ESG considerations, and biogas gives them the opportunity to combine their waste management with the use of green energy. Good examples show that up to 800–1000 tons of packaging material per year can be used for energy recovery instead of landfilling.

 

A significant amount of pet food was collected during the sixth joint pet food donation campaign organised by SPAR Hungary and the National Animal Welfare Foundation. During the “Paw in Trouble!” (Mancs a bajban!) initiative, held in INTERSPAR stores on 16-17 May 2026, customers donated nearly 12 tonnes of dry dog and cat food to support animals cared for by civil animal welfare organisations. In addition, SPAR contributed a further HUF 1 million in support of animal welfare.

Animal lovers from across the country joined the weekend collection effort: shoppers were able to donate pet food and other useful animal care products selected during their shopping to volunteers representing participating organisations in INTERSPAR stores. The collected donations were delivered directly to animal welfare organisations, where they provide essential support for day-to-day care. Initiatives like this are crucial, as the donated food often covers the animals’ daily needs for an extended period, allowing organisations to dedicate more attention and resources to veterinary care and the development of their shelters.

During this year’s “Paw in Trouble!” pet food donation weekend, INTERSPAR customers provided a substantial amount of support for animals living under the care of animal welfare organisations. For dogs, more than 9 tonnes of dry food, 5,530 tins and pouches of wet food, and 382 dog salamis were donated. For cats, customers contributed nearly 2.5 tonnes of dry food, 11,100 tins and pouches of wet food, as well as almost 1.1 tonnes of cat litter. In addition, a large quantity of animal care equipment and cleaning products was collected.

“Once again, our customers’ participation has shown that animal welfare is an important cause for many people in Hungary. It is of great value to SPAR Magyarország that the community so actively supports the work of animal welfare organisations. The donations collected provide genuine assistance in the organisations’ day-to-day activities,” said Márk Maczelka, head of communications at SPAR Hungary

This year, more than 30 civil animal welfare organisations accepted customer donations in INTERSPAR stores.

“For us, a collection like this means far more than a simple donation. Animal welfare organisations often operate with very limited resources, so every single bag of food or tin of pet food provides real help in caring for the animals. We are grateful to everyone who took the time and care to contribute towards improving the living conditions of rescued dogs and

cats,” emphasised Katalin Schreiter, spokesperson for the National Animal Welfare Foundation.

In addition to this campaign, customers in SPAR and INTERSPAR stores can meet and support civil animal welfare organisations throughout the year on a month-by-month basis through further donation initiatives. Information about the locations and dates of upcoming collections is available on SPAR’s dedicated online platform: www.sparafenntarthatojovoert.hu/mancsabajban.

 

Geely in Austria

AutoWallis is further strengthening its portfolio with another leading brand after signing a distribution agreement for Austria with China’s Geely Auto. The agreement covers the Austrian distribution rights of the Geely brand this time. With this step, AutoWallis further expands the number of brands it represents and strengthens its cooperation with the world’s eighth largest vehicle manufacturer, while further diversifying its position in Central and Eastern Europe.

The Geely brand will enter the Austrian market in 2026 with two models and two types of powertrains: the E5, and the Starray EM-I models are a mid-range, elegant yet distinctive SUV. E5’s design has earned several prestigious international awards, including the Red Dot Award, the MUSE Design Award, the IDA Design Award, and the A’ Design Award. E5 has an outstanding drag coefficient of 0.269 and will be available with a 60.22 kWh battery pack, promising a WLTP range of 430 km, while the plug-in hybrid model with a 1.5-liter gasoline engine and 18.4 kWh battery has a total output of 217 hp and a range of approximately 940 km.

 

 

XPENG in Romania

AutoWallis, the leading integrated car dealer and mobility service provider in the CEE region, has reached a tripartite agreement with its Portuguese partner, the Salvador Caetano Group and the innovative, AI-focused Chinese car manufacturer XPENG to become the importer of XPENG in Romania. This agreement is built on the foundations of the already ongoing cooperation in three other CEE countries (Hungary, Slovenia and Croatia) in 2025 with the innovative, AI-focused Chinese car manufacturer. Sales in the fourth market is expected to start early this summer.

The brand is at the forefront of the new energy car revolution: the quality of their cars is competing with the world’s leading premium manufacturers, and its technological superiority is outstanding in areas such as artificial intelligence, ultra-fast charging or advanced autonomous driving.

Commenting on this recent milestone, Gábor Ormosy, CEO of AutoWallis highlighted, that “We are delighted that XPENG has entrusted AutoWallis and our partner Salvador Caetano with a fourth market, especially given that Romania is the second most populous country in Central Eastern Europe. Compared to the three markets where we already started operations in 2025, Romania represents an additional sales volume opportunity of around 60%.”

ALTEO is launching a free, online report that provides operators, owners, and prospective investors in energy storage with real, first-hand data on potential returns.

The objective is clear: to help dispel misconceptions and uncertainties surrounding energy storage, and to support well-informed decision-making in a rapidly evolving market environment.

The market is constantly changing—making it especially important that decisions are based on up-to-date, real-world data.

The full report is available on ALTEO’s website.