Brownfield sites—the former factories of Europe’s industrial past—are being transformed into 21st-century business parks and mixed-use areas focused on the future. Driven by the EU’s Green Deal and its various components—chief among them the EU Soil Strategy for 2030, which calls for zero net land take by 2050—the “brownfield before greenfield” mantra is taking hold, with a promise to reshape Europe’s development landscape for good.
Not all the leaves are brown
Dirty, often toxic eyesores that blight the cities they once served, brownfields were long seen as bad for business. High clean-up costs and multi-level bureaucratic red tape made greenfield sites the faster, cheaper, and easier option for most real estate development projects in Europe in recent decades.
That was then. Under today’s paradigm of growing land scarcity and urban densification, looming climate targets, and tightening land-use rules, brownfields are gaining traction across Europe as a priority path for sustainable development.
This trend, while more pronounced in mature western markets where land scarcity is more acute, is also taking hold in Central and Eastern Europe. Particularly in urban areas, brownfields are being embraced by developers, investors, and policymakers alike, who no longer see them as liabilities but as unique opportunities to meet multiple challenges head-on while supporting the growth of innovative industries and cities across Europe.
If done correctly, brownfield redevelopment is a win-win for everyone.
The writing is on the soil
Since announcing its Green Deal in December 2019, the European Union has set Europe on a course of fundamental change to meet the targets set for the decarbonisation of the economy and other climate-related targets. While the energy transition from hydrocarbons to renewables gets much of the headline attention, fundamental changes to land use in the EU is also a major component of the Green Deal.
The EU Soil Strategy for 2030 sets out a new land management model to protect soil health, promote sustainable food production and biodiversity, and strengthen climate resilience. Its centrepiece is the target of “no net land take” by 2050 based on the concept of land recycling—which shines the spotlight on brownfield sites as a priority location for the full spectrum of property development, including the industrial and logistics (“I&L”) sector.
In practice, this means that future greenfield development must be offset by restoring or reusing brownfield land or other remediation investments such as forest restoration. Already by 2030, the Member States must meet several medium-term targets, including the clean-up of contaminated sites. This and other EU-level initiatives, legislation, and directives are spurring the Member States and local municipalities to prioritise brownfield projects.
Germany is currently leading the way. According to German real estate consultancy Logivest, in 2024, roughly 40% of all new industrial & logistics (“I&L”) development projects in the country took place at a brownfield site. Given the growing restrictions on greenfield land development, this number seems certain to rise—not only in Germany, but across the European Union.
