Dear ESTC Members,
As we begin a new year, I would like to extend my warmest wishes to you and your teams. I hope 2026 brings good health, success, and continued progress for you, your organisations, and for our synthetic turf industry as a whole.
Synthetic turf continues to play an increasingly important role in society—supporting sport, recreation, and community life across Europe and beyond. At the same time, our industry operates in a rapidly evolving environment, shaped by sustainability expectations, regulatory developments, and public scrutiny. Against this backdrop, ESTC remains firmly committed to representing an industry that embodies excellence, sustainability, and innovation.
Our mission remains unchanged: to represent a turf industry which embodies excellence, sustainability, and innovation. Through advocacy, education, and collaboration, we drive responsible practices and evidence-based progress, ensuring the enduring positive influence of turf solutions on communities and the environment. Building on this mission, the Board is currently developing an updated strategy for the coming years. This is not a major shift in direction, but rather a sharpening of focus on the areas where ESTC can make the greatest impact for its members and for the industry.
Key priorities within this strategy will include:
- Promoting the benefits of synthetic turf, with a stronger, more structured approach to communicating its positive impact on society
- Advocating for synthetic turf as a sustainable industry, grounded in evidence, responsible practices, and continuous improvement
- Reducing microplastic pollution, with a focus on yarn durability, maintenance practices, and regulation
- Contributing to end-of-life solutions, stimulating cooperation and innovation to address this shared challenge
- Implementing and rolling out PEF in the turf market, and helping to create both supply-side readiness and market demand
- Ensuring a fair and competitive playing field, including actions related to imports from non-market economies
A major strategic emphasis will be on clearly articulating and promoting the benefits of synthetic turf, including: supporting the health of society by enabling higher levels of physical activity, delivering strong social impact for communities, highlighting significant water savings and high intensity of use compared to natural alternatives and reduced maintenance requirements.
A dedicated benefits campaign is currently in preparation, alongside a broader plan for the structured promotion of these benefits across stakeholders and decision-makers.
In parallel, ESTC will continue to strengthen its role as an advocate for sustainability. This includes finalising and publishing the yarn wear study, driving effective maintenance regulation to prevent microplastic pollution, supporting end-of-life innovation and EPR legislation, and actively helping the industry implement and apply PEF. Importantly, ESTC will not position itself as a technical standard-setter, but will continue to reference legislative bodies, connect with research institutes, and translate evidence into clear advocacy messages.
Overall, our direction is clear: a stronger focus on the benefits and impact of synthetic turf, targeted action on key priorities, and increased advocacy through proactive engagement with policymakers and stakeholders.
Finally, I would like to highlight our Annual ESTC Congress in Seville this April. This event remains a cornerstone of our association, bringing together members, experts, and stakeholders from across the industry. The programme will address many of the strategic themes outlined above, combining regulatory updates, sustainability discussions, and opportunities for networking and collaboration. I very much look forward to meeting many of you there and continuing our conversations in person.
With best wishes for a successful year ahead,
Kind regards,
Paul Fraser
Chair