To make tire production more sustainable, Bridgestone is turning to a desert shrub called guayule as a source of natural rubber.
Native to northern Mexico and the southwestern United States, guayule is a heat-tolerant source of natural rubber that can be used to make tires, Bridgestone said in a recent press release. Natural rubber can be extracted from guayule’s branches, bark, and roots, and it can be farmed with existing crop-row equipment, according to the company.
Cultivating guayule helps diversify the world’s natural rubber supply, allows Bridgestone to produce more rubber locally for the U.S. market, and contributes to the tire maker’s sustainability goals. Bridgestone aims to achieve carbon neutrality and make tires from 100% renewable materials by 2050.
Guayule plants to be used as a rubber source for Bridgestone tires
To meet those goals, Bridgestone is looking at both increased recycling of end-of-life tires and alternatives to non-renewable materials like oil, silica and virgin carbon black currently used in tires. That’s where guayule comes in.
Bridgestone started its guayule research in earnest in 2012, when it broke ground on a guayule processing and research center in Mesa, Arizona. Tires made with the plant were used for the first time in IndyCar racing earlier this year. Bridgestone hopes to commercialize guayule natural-rubber tires by 2030 in passenger cars and other applications.
Other companies are also looking for ways to make tires more sustainable.
Firestone Firehawk IndyCar race tires made with guayule rubber
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