High sales expected again
The fireworks industry is hoping for a dazzling end to the year
December 27, 2023, 1:32 p.m
The pyrotechnic industry has been suffering for two years: Due to Corona, rockets and firecrackers are banned at the turn of the year. Last year, manufacturers such as Comet, Weco and Nico made up for some of their losses with record sales. The industry is expecting good business this year too.
The Association of the Pyrotechnic Industry expects a similarly high demand for New Year’s Eve fireworks at the turn of the year as last year. In 2022, the industry achieved record sales of 180 million euros. “The demand was huge, the pent-up demand was obviously high,” said managing director Klaus Gotzen. Fireworks were banned on New Year’s Eve 2020 and 2021 due to corona. Gotzen emphasized that the industry is optimistic that demand will be high again this year.
The fireworks industry generates 90 percent of annual sales on the three working days before New Year’s Eve. Sales of rockets, firecrackers, etc. to consumers nationwide are scheduled to begin on Thursday.
The Bremerhaven fireworks company Comet has a market share of 30 percent in Germany and the company produces in China. Comet achieved sales of around 50 million euros last year. “It would be nice to get close to it again,” said managing director Richard Eickel.
Comet’s competitors include Nico from Berlin and Weco from Eitorf in North Rhine-Westphalia. According to its own information, Weco is the only remaining major German manufacturer of fireworks. Weco is also optimistic about this year’s New Year’s Eve business. “We have tailwind from last season,” emphasized sales manager Oliver Gerstmeier.
Criticism about garbage, noise and health hazards
The industry has been relying on pyrotechnics and packaging with less plastic since last year. Rocket tip caps, stands or fuse covers, which were previously made of plastic, were reportedly replaced with cardboard or plant fibers. By reducing the amount of plastic, “hundreds of tons of waste would be saved,” emphasized association boss Gotzen.
According to the Federal Environment Agency, spent fireworks, multi-shot batteries and firecrackers should under no circumstances be disposed of in the recycling bin. Because of the chemicals they contain, the authorities say they belong in the trash. In order to avoid the toxic residues being washed away with rain or meltwater and ending up in the ground and waterways, the waste should be disposed of promptly.
However, a lot of things often remain on the streets and sidewalks. The Association of Municipal Companies announced that in the five largest German cities of Berlin, Hamburg, Munich, Cologne and Frankfurt am Main alone, municipal waste disposal companies regularly remove around 200 tons of New Year’s Eve waste on New Year’s Day. But that’s not all that happens: a large part of it is collected in the following days by regular street cleaning.
Fireworks are repeatedly criticized, not only because of the waste, but also because of the environmental, noise and health impact as well as the risk of injury. Most recently, German Environmental Aid renewed its call for a ban on firecrackers at the turn of the year. The Hamburg Nature Conservation Association calls on people to voluntarily avoid fireworks. Fireworks not only cause enormous pollution with fine dust and a lot of rubbish, they also harm wild animals.