In the third part of the series on ecolabel holders, we introduce one of the oldest ceramic tile brands in the world, RAKO, which has held the EU Ecolabel for its entire production of these products since 2022. Eva Dvořáčková, Quality Manager at LASSELSBERGER, s.r.o., the owner of the RAKO brand, described the reasons why they applied for the ecolabel and the benefits it has brought them.
Briefly introduce your company and the certified products.
The RAKO brand is one of the oldest brands in the Czech industry and one of the oldest ceramic tile brands in the world. The Austrian company LASSELSBERGER has been operating in the Czech Republic since 1998. After the owner, LASSELSBERGER, bought all the Czech ceramic factories (Chlumčany, Horní Bříza, Borovany, Podbořany and Rakovník), he merged them into one company and since 2002 has been offering ceramic tiling elements under the RAKO brand. We have held the EU Ecolabel since 2022 for all our ceramic tiles.
How did you find out about the ecolabel opportunity?
Our company learned about the Ecolabel from foreign business partners and representatives who required its implementation due to EU requirements and placed emphasis on proving environmentally friendly production with less negative impact on the environment.
What motivated you to obtain the ecolabel for your products?
The European Commission emphasises environmentally responsible procurement and will push for some degree of harmonisation of green purchasing requirements between Member States. Therefore, our company wanted to present that our products meet such requirements and can offer products with less negative impact on the environment.
How has this benefited your business?
For our company Lasselsberger, s.r.o., the EU Ecolabel means first and foremost a marketing advantage and facilitates the entry of our products on the domestic and foreign market.
Do you use the ecolabel as part of your corporate marketing? How?
For all our ceramic products, we minimize the negative environmental impact across the entire life cycle – from the extraction of minerals to their recycling. Therefore, information on environmental certifications can be found on the company’s website in the Ecology and Environmental section, in product catalogues and in technical data sheets.
