SUSTAINABILITY
Sustainability at Don Bellini is not a slogan — it's built into how we select materials, manage waste, and design for longevity. Porcelain is fired at high temperatures, giving it exceptional density and durability: it resists scratches, cracks and chipping far better than lower-fired alternatives, which means fewer replacements and less waste over a product's working life. Stoneware, fired at lower temperatures for its distinctive colour and glaze character, is a slightly softer material — and it's where much of our recycled-content innovation is focused, most notably in our Remade collection.
We take a practical, continuous-improvement approach to sustainability: reducing waste at the point of production, treating water responsibly, and choosing raw materials with care. Below is an honest look at how that works.
Remade is where our sustainability commitment goes furthest. This stoneware collection is crafted with up to 20% recycled materials and is certified to meet GRS 4.0 (Global Recycled Standard) requirements, which independently verifies the recycled content and responsible sourcing behind every piece.
Porcelain and stoneware are, by nature, highly durable and — at end of life — recyclable materials. We see real long-term potential in circular design, and Remade is our first collection built specifically around that principle. It won't be our last.
REDUCING WASTE AT THE SOURCE
WASTE AND REJECT PRODUCTS
GROUNDED INTO FINE POWDER
RECYCLED AS RAW MATERIALS
REUSING RECYCLED MATERIALS
Any porcelain that doesn't meet our quality standards doesn't go to landfill by default — it goes through a dedicated reclamation process. Rejected and waste porcelain is ground down into a fine powder and reintroduced as raw material into new batches of clay.
Up to 6% of the ceramic material in our porcelain production is recycled and reused this way. It's a modest but meaningful figure, and one we're actively working to increase as our production processes evolve.
Clay itself also has an inherent environmental advantage: it does not release toxic gases during firing, which keeps our production process cleaner than many alternative materials used in commercial tableware manufacturing.
WATER TREATMENT
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RESPONSIBLE WATER MANAGEMENT
Ceramic production is water-intensive, and treating that water responsibly is a core part of our environmental practice. Wastewater from our production process passes through a multi-stage treatment system — settling, regulating, dehydrating and filtering — before clay solids are separated, dried and reintroduced into raw material stock, and water is cleaned for reuse or safe discharge.
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RAW MATERIALS
What goes into our porcelain? Our tableware is made from a small number of carefully selected raw materials, each with a specific role:
KAOLIN
SILICA SAND
K-FELDSPAR
NATURAL CATTLE BONE POWDER
LEAD-FREE GLAZE
A fine, highly plastic clay and the primary building block of porcelain.
Added to increase the strength and hardness of the fired body.
Lowers the melting point during firing and improves the durability of the finished piece.
Used exclusively in our Bone China collection, to achieve its signature whiteness and translucency.
Every colour and finish across our collections uses lead-free glaze formulations.
SUSTAINABILITY THAT SUPPORTS YOUR PROCUREMENT STANDARDS
Many of the hotel groups, restaurants and distributors we work with are held to their own environmental sourcing standards. We're glad to support that: our Remade collection's GRS 4.0 certification, our waste-reclamation process, and our lead-free glaze standards across all collections are documented and available on request for RFPs, supplier audits and ESG reporting.