The Aluminium Stewardship Initiative wants to simplify the way sustainably certified aluminium is passed down the supply chain, to encourage more operators to participate and boost sales of ASI certified aluminium products. The ASI Standard that sets out how this is done, the Chain of Custody (CoC) Standard, is being revised and the public is being consulted on a range of options. However, the best alternatives are not yet on the table and those that are, may result in more complexity not less.
The CoC standard may sound boringly administrative, but it brings a sustainability scheme to life. Without it, ASI would become submerged in a sea of ISO, ASTM, CEN and other standards. ASI operates a controlled mass balance model, in which certified bauxite, alumina and aluminium are processed with their approved non-certified counterparts, as it is not economic to process the two types separately. The mass balance system guarantees that, at the end of a specific period, operators have bought enough of the responsible raw material to account for the certified products they have sold.
Immediately after the launch of a commodity sustainability scheme, the initial quantities of certified material available are limited. They become distributed and diluted as they are co-processed with conventional material in world-scale facilities. As more participants become involved, volumes and average concentrations of certified material in circulation, increase. But the barriers to get a complete supply chain certified are significant, and substantial buyer demand is required.
ASI is still stuck in the initial phase; volumes of ASI certified products are not increasing quickly enough. They are being held back not only by lack of demand, but also by competition from other forms of responsible aluminium, namely recycled and low carbon. ASI’s own research showed that over 40% of CoC certified companies sourced no ASI material in 2024. Some have been certified for three or more years and never sourced ASI material.
So how can this problem be overcome? Some members think that restricting the current mass balance arrangements, which allow operators to receive ASI certified material at the most convenient site and sell from another site nearer to the customer, must be curtailed. The idea is to increase the connection between ASI certified raw material inputs and outputs, by ensuring they are located at the same site. It is a way of ‘concentrating’ what ASI certified materials there are in circulation. However, this will involve operators transporting batches of ASI certified raw materials across the world to the sites from which the corresponding products are being sold. They might decide that this extra complexity is not worth the effort. ASI has itself identified the risk of ‘attrition from the CoC programme’ if this measure is implemented. And, even if this ‘same site’ option were to become a requirement, there would still be no guarantee that ASI certified material is present in a particular batch of product. So, tinkering with mass balance options is unlikely to make much difference.
Actually, a bolder transformation is needed, to bring companies who currently source recycled and low carbon primary materials further into the ASI fold. Operators may have certification to the Performance Standard to demonstrate that they respect indigenous peoples’ rights and biodiversity, but the current CoC Standard doesn’t offer what they need. Companies want to make additional statements, about using materials that are also low carbon or recycled. Allowing for more flexibility within the Chain of Custody Standard, to make tailored claims, would increase its attractiveness. And now ASI is reducing the tracking required, it would be straightforward to maintain separate mass balances for each type of material.
Sustainability Schemes must constantly adapt and reframe their offer to align with concepts understood by politicians and consumers. Recycling in particular is now embedded into public consciousness, at least in the West. At the same time, both primary and recycled aluminium will be required to satisfy the growth of aluminium usage in lightweight transport and other new technologies. Operators need a Chain of Custody Standard that allows them to communicate the types of aluminium they are using, in terms that resonate with the public.
Published: 31 March 26
