On 14 April, a newspaper article in Sydsvenskan with a negative tilt towards Polygiene made the share tumble ~42% in a single trading day. In the article, Anders Finnson from Svenskt Vatten called the company’s slogan “Wear more – wash less” a scam. The critique is more tilted towards if Polygiene’s products have a positive effect on the environment, as there is no scientific proof that the consumer washes the treated clothes less than untreated clothes. The article also cites a few research reports that were not able to find any evidence of less intensive washing, but the same reports find that the clothes smell less when treated. According to our understanding, this feud between Svenskt Vatten and Polygiene has been ongoing for ten years and Svenskt Vatten’s main concern is that silver is leaked into the wastewater when washing and then finds its way into nature. However, Polygiene has already pointed out in earlier communications that the amount of silver in the sludge has been decreasing in the past 20 years and is below the threshold level in Stockholm.
A source claims the European market is dead, which is not true
The silver debate and whether to allow silver chloride in clothing has been ongoing in the EU since the start of 2000, with no ending in sight. According to a source in the article, a decision is likely in 2024 or 2025, but Polygiene thinks it will take longer than that and plans to continue business as usual. EU can grant permission to use it where the benefit is greater than the risk. Furthermore, an anonymous source in the article claims that the European market is dead regardless of the decision, but we disagree, as the share of sales coming from Europe has been steady at around 50% in the last three quarters for Polygiene.
The company claims it can replace silver with other ...
Läs mer på ABG Sundal Collier
Aktuellt
SENASTE
