Hold Danmark Rent

What Hold Danmark Rent does

Hold Danmark Rent (HDR) is a Danish nonprofit knowledge center and network organization, founded in 2007, that works to reduce littered waste in Denmark's public spaces, nature, and coastal zones. The organization serves Danish municipal governments (kommuner) as its primary customer base, alongside environmentally minded businesses and volunteer associations. Its core offering is the HDR Affaldsanalyse, an annual waste analysis service that combines standardized field measurement (visual scoring and physical counting of cigarette butts, small waste, and large waste across 20 defined location types and 80 measurement points per municipality) with a proprietary 9-level index system (HDR Affaldsindeks and the Skodindeks sub-index for cigarette butts). The methodology was co-developed with European partners through the Clean Europe Network founded in 2012 and refined over nine years of annual data collection.

HDR monetizes primarily through two subscription tiers — DKK 16,000/year municipal memberships and DKK 10,000/year business/organization memberships — supplemented by hourly consulting (DKK 800/hour), focus group facilitation (starting at DKK 12,000), and annual conference participation. Beyond analysis, HDR operates two large-scale volunteer programs: Ren Natur (50+ municipalities, up to 10,000 volunteers annually) and Strandkasserne (196 beach boxes collecting 200+ tonnes of marine litter per year). The organization also distributes small physical products (pocket ashtrays, smoker's grates, trash funnels) and maintains an open-access Vidensportal knowledge database. The team of 1-10 employees is led by Director Dan Boding-Jensen with Senior Advisor Anette Juul Jensen and project managers Katrine Dunham and Emilie Greve. Effective January 1, 2026, HDR becomes part of Econet A/S, with the HDR waste analysis brand transferring to Econet and the Ren Natur and Strandkasserne concepts continuing under a new entity, Ren Natur ApS.

Name

Hold Danmark Rent

Legal name

Hold Danmark Rent

Website

https://holddanmarkrent.dk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2007

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Hold Danmark Rent is a Danish nonprofit knowledge center that conducts annual standardized waste analyses for municipalities, operates a proprietary litter index system, and runs volunteer programs (Ren Natur, Strandkasserne beach boxes) serving Danish kommuner, businesses, and volunteer associations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Environmental Consulting Services

NAICS

Solid Waste Collection (562111), Waste Collection (56211)

SIC

Refuse Systems (4953), Sanitary Services (4950)

akta.pro primary industry

Street & Public Space Litter Collection (Municipal Cleaning) (BPALAAAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Street & Public-Space Litter Collection (Bins, Parks, Transit) (EUAIAAAG), Waste & Hazardous Materials Management (incl. HazMat) (BPAHAJAK)

Keywords

• Waste analysis services
• Municipal cleaning consulting
• Litter prevention programs
• Environmental knowledge center
• Volunteer cleanup coordination

Headquarters

HQ city

Svendborg

HQ country

Denmark

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain, Others

Revenue model

1. Municipal Membership: Annual membership fee of DKK 16,000 per year for Danish municipalities, including a mandatory annual waste analysis on municipal areas, 2 annual dialog meetings, access to professional consulting, participation in the HDR Professional Forum on LinkedIn, and a discounted invitation to the annual conference.
2. Business/Organization Membership: Annual membership fee of DKK 10,000 per year for companies and organizations with a green profile, including 2 annual dialog meetings, inspiration for annual waste collection events for employees, and optional participation in the Ren Natur concept as a sponsor.
3. Professional Consulting Services: Ad hoc professional consulting on specific litter-related issues, processes, or projects. Charged at DKK 800 per hour. Longer-term project collaborations are priced separately with a project plan and budget.
4. Annual Conference Participation: Annual Videns- og Inspirationskonference with a maximum of 80 participants. Non-member price is DKK 1,500 per person; members receive a discounted rate.
5. Focus Group and Workshop Facilitation: Facilitation of citizen focus groups and dialog meetings on litter themes. Starting price of DKK 12,000 for preparation, 2-hour meeting facilitation, and reporting.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Hold Danmark Rent delivers annual waste analysis services (HDR Affaldsanalyse) for Danish municipalities using a proprietary 9-level index methodology covering 20 location types. The organization sells annual memberships to municipalities (DKK 16,000/year) and businesses (DKK 10,000/year), which bundle an annual on-site analysis, dialog meetings, professional consulting, and access to the Vidensportal knowledge database. Additional offerings include specialized litter-prevention hardware (pocket ashtrays, smoker's grates, trash funnels), the Ren Natur volunteer program in 50+ municipalities, and 196 Strandkasser beach boxes collecting 200+ tonnes of marine waste annually.

Product overview

Hold Danmark Rent (HDR) is a nonprofit knowledge center and network organization that works to reduce litter in Danish nature and public spaces through practical, collaborative approaches with municipalities, volunteers, and businesses. The organization operates as a unified platform combining analytical services, membership programs, and specialized products. The core offering is HDR Affaldsanalyse, an annual waste analysis service for municipalities that provides data-driven insights through HDR's proprietary index system (HDR-Affaldsindeks and Skodindeks). This is supported by an annual HDR Vidensportal membership for municipalities and businesses that includes dialogue meetings, expert consultation, and conference access. The product portfolio also includes specialized waste solutions such as Lommeaskebægeret (pocket ashtray), Rygeristen (smoker's grate), Skraldetragten (trash funnel), and Den Ideelle Skraldespand (trash can specifications). The organization maintains two volunteer programs: Ren Natur (established 2018) for citizen litter collection involving associations, and Strandkasserne (beach boxes, established 2018) for marine debris collection along Danish coasts. Knowledge resources include documentation on waste types and decomposition times. International collaboration occurs through Clean Europe Network and Nordic Coastal Cleanup.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Strandkasserne: Beach boxes for collecting marine litter along Danish coasts. There are 196 Strandkasser functioning from Varde in the south to Skagen in the north as of 2025.
• Ren Natur

Products and services

• HDR Affaldsanalyse Systematic annual waste assessment service providing Danish municipalities with data on litter quantities, cleanliness quality scores, and index measurements across 20 different location types. Includes count data and index scoring for cigarette butts, small waste, and large waste categories; 80 measurement points per municipality.
• HDR Medlemskab (Membership) Annual membership program for municipalities (DKK 16,000/year) and businesses/organizations (DKK 10,000/year) including annual waste analysis for municipal tier, two annual dialog meetings, professional consulting access, participation in HDR Professional Forum on LinkedIn, and a discounted invitation to the annual conference.
• Lommeaskebægeret (Pocket Ashtray)

Quantifiable outcome

• Average waste volumes decreased by 22% in 2024 compared to 2023 — the first decrease recorded in the 9-year history of HDR's annual analysis.
• +6 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Econet A/ScoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Effective January 1, 2026, Hold Danmark Rent becomes part of Econet A/S. The HDR brand and all waste analysis products will be managed by Econet A/S. The headquarters will be at Maltfabrikken in Ebeltoft and Rådmandsgade in Copenhagen. The transition was announced via press release on October 22, 2025.
• Nordic Coastal Cleanup (NCC)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2017Since 2017, HDR has represented Denmark in the Nordic Coastal Cleanup campaign community, with participation from all Nordic countries plus Åland, Greenland, and the Faroe Islands. The collaboration includes annual waste counting on reference beaches, a Nordic Coastal Cleanup Day, workshops, and conferences. Nordic Council of Ministers has provided financial support. HDR collects over 200 tonnes of marine waste annually through this network.
• Clean Europe Network (CEN)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2012HDR was instrumental in establishing the Clean Europe Network in 2012, a network of European 'hold-rent' (keep-clean) organizations. CEN facilitated the development of the common analysis methodology that forms the basis of HDR's current waste analysis. The network celebrated its 10-year anniversary in 2023 and published a joint 7-key-element strategy for combating litter across Europe. HDR remains the Danish representative in the network.
• Hold Norge Rent (Keep Norway Clean)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHDR collaborates with its Norwegian sister organization, Hold Norge Rent, sharing knowledge and best practices. Hold Norge Rent celebrated its 10-year anniversary in November 2024, presenting an packaging design guide to reduce litter in public spaces. HDR featured this guide as inspiration for Danish stakeholders.
• Dansk Retursystem (Danish Return System)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHDR conducted an analysis for Dansk Retursystem examining beverage container litter in Denmark. The analysis found only 0.5% of 267,000 recorded litter items were bottles and cans, demonstrating the effectiveness of Denmark's deposit-refund system. The partnership highlights the impact of the pant (deposit) system on litter reduction.
• Miljøstyrelsen (Danish Environmental Protection Agency)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMiljøstyrelsen implemented a new producer responsibility tax system for litter in 2023. In 2023, DKK 32 million was distributed to Danish municipalities as compensation for cigarette butt cleanup costs. HDR's index system is promoted as a tool for municipalities to allocate these compensation funds effectively to critical litter locations.
• FGU in Randers (Vocational School)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerYoung students from the metallurgy line at FGU in Randers collaborated with Randers Municipality and HDR in 2021 to develop new ashtrays with a point system for Justesens Plæne park, as part of the cigarette butt mission project.
• Danmarks Naturfredningsforening (Danish Nature Conservation Association)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorBoth the Danish Nature Conservation Association and Ren Natur mobilize thousands of volunteers who actively collect litter across Denmark. While not a formal partnership, the organizations share a collaborative ecosystem of volunteer litter pickup activities.
• Tobacco Manufacturers (Tobaksproducenter)minorOthersHDR collaborated with tobacco manufacturers in 2021 to fund and study cigarette butt prevention experiments across 4 test municipalities (Randers, Aalborg, Næstved, and Ishøj). This collaboration falls under extended producer responsibility regulations requiring tobacco companies to compensate municipalities for butt cleanup.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Hold Norge Rent (Keep Norway Clean): Norwegian sister organization and direct peer, also conducting standardized litter analysis and volunteer mobilization. Sister org relationship explicitly cited in HDR data; presents the clearest model for Nordic expansion.
• Ocean Conservancy: US-based marine debris organization running the International Coastal Cleanup with comparable volunteer mobilization and litter data collection methodology. Adjacent but comparable in scale and mission to HDR's coastal work.
• Keep Australia Beautiful: Australian national litter prevention network, part of the International Keep America Beautiful-affiliated network. Conducts comparable litter surveys, citizen engagement, and beach cleanup programs in another geography.
• Keep Britain Tidy: UK's leading independent litter prevention charity with similar methodology, volunteer programs, and municipal partnerships. Largest established keep-clean organization in Europe; HDR's Clean Europe Network partner.
• Keep Sweden Clean (Håll Sverige Rent): Swedish keep-clean organization that is part of the Clean Europe Network alongside HDR. Performs comparable litter analysis and citizen engagement campaigns in Swedish municipalities, directly analogous in scope and methodology.
• Keep New Zealand Beautiful: New Zealand's national litter prevention organization, part of the International Keep America Beautiful network. Comparable in mission scope, including litter surveys, beach cleanups, and citizen engagement programs.
• Surfrider Foundation Europe: European NGO focused on coastal and marine litter with volunteer beach cleanup networks comparable to HDR's Strandkasserne and Nordic Coastal Cleanup. Operates Ocean Initiatives program in multiple countries including Denmark.

Broad incumbents

• Waste Management Inc. North America's largest waste and environmental services company, providing waste collection, recycling, and disposal at scale. Broad incumbent in the broader waste management industry that touches HDR's municipal customers.
• Econet A/S: Danish environmental analysis company that is acquiring HDR effective January 2026. Operates broader environmental and waste analytics across municipalities, making it a logical incumbent parent and platform for HDR's future commercial expansion.

Others

• Dansk Retursystem: Danish deposit-refund system operator that commissioned HDR's beverage container litter analysis. Complementary infrastructure player rather than a direct competitor; relevant as a Danish EPR ecosystem partner.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/holddanmarkrent

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Hold Danmark Rent