The new corporate sustainability program is compliant with legal requirements as well as the Global Responsible Care Charter and was devised to meet customer and market needs.
“Transparency is central and Clariant’s annual Sustainability Report reports on the company’s projects, measures, performance and achievements,” says Anu Desikan, global marketing manager for Personal Care.
“It is not just about natural ingredients. It is also implementing an efficient use of resources,” she tells CosmeticsDesign-Europe.com.
Natural ingredients have been at the centre of many recent product launches for the supplier due to sustained demand, but Desikan explains that when a natural ingredient may not fully fit the criteria, then a non-natural ingredient may be better, and this can still be sustainably produced.
“Consumers want performance as well as sustainability,” she says. “So, it is important to produce a high performing product, and this can still be done sustainably, whether natural or not.”
EcoTain life-cycle approach
Clariant’s environmental goals, targeted to 2020, include reducing water usage by a quarter, energy consumption by almost a third, and direct CO2 emissions by 45 per cent.
The newly launched EcoTain label represents the firm’s sustainability efforts at the product level, in line with these goals of continuous improvement.
The label was developed by Clariant experts and complements its' efforts and programs in other areas that include environmental performance, sustainable innovation, people excellence, and community projects.
The approach is expressed in a four-phase life cycle so that Clariant can assess the ecological, environmental and social impact of its business, from initial design through to recycling and waste disposal.
“The market is changing and sustainable products and processes are increasingly an integral requirement of the value chains,” explains Muttenz-headquartered company.
“Many of our customers are already involved in sustainable initiatives and we are proud that through EcoTain we can meet their needs by providing the required ingredients backed by documented, sustainable processes and technologies.”