L'Oreal Invests in Sustainably Sourced Ingredients
Geno, a leader in sustainable materials, has announced that L'Oreal, a world-renowned beauty brand, is joining its venture as the third global company and final founding investor.
The venture aims to develop, produce, and market biotechnology-based alternatives to critical ingredients used in the formulations of everyday cosmetics, personal care, and cleaning products.
L'Oreal, being the world leader in beauty, brings its expertise and access to the $571.10 billion beauty and personal care market, joining founding members Unilever and Kao Corporation to bring the collective member revenue to $100 billion or more.
Together, the Geno-led venture aims to meet the increasing demand for sustainable ingredients using biotechnology, improve the environmental profile of popular products, and satisfy consumers' expectations for more transparent supply chains.
Geno will use its biotechnology platform, which employs engineered microorganisms to ferment plant sugars and produce sustainable surfactants. These surfactants will be incorporated into a range of L'Oreal's products, which is a crucial step towards achieving L'Oreal's objectives of 100% eco-designed formulas that respect aquatic ecosystems' diversity and 95% ingredients derived from renewable plant-based sources or abundant minerals by 2030.
As part of its sustainability initiative, L'Oreal for the Future, the beauty leader is emphasising partnerships with biotechnology innovators such as Geno, with a proven track record, to explore, develop, and produce more sustainable ingredients for everyday products that the world relies on.
Christophe Schilling, Chief Executive Officer for Geno said:
“Welcoming L’Oréal to this incredible team of global brand heavyweights signifies just how important and urgent the need is for traceable, resilient, and sustainable materials at scale. L’Oréal’s commitment further validates Geno’s ability to deliver at scale and accelerates our journey toward reducing global carbon emissions by over 100 million tons in the upcoming years by targeting large-scale material markets. We’re energised to help L’Oréal achieve its bold 2030 goals of incorporating 95% bio-based ingredients for formulas and using traceable packaging materials from sustainable sources.
"This partnership will further catapult our venture’s mission to the global scale required to meet strong market demand for sustainable products.”
Barbara Lavernos, Deputy Chief Executive Officer in charge of Research, Innovation and Technology for L’Oréal, said:
“At L’Oréal, we believe that science has the power to create a better world, and we are committed to using our expertise to drive positive change in the beauty industry. That’s why we have made Green Sciences, our new scientific and sustainable revolution, the cornerstone of our Research. We are thrilled to partner with Geno, whose unique approach to developing alternative biotechnology-based ingredients perfectly aligns with our vision of a more sustainable future. By working together with other beauty players, we can leverage our collective expertise and resources wherever our collective efforts can have a meaningful purpose.”
Sanford Browne, President of Research and Innovation for North America for L’Oréal, said:
“This move not only aligns with our objective of delivering responsible and innovative beauty solutions to consumers but also strengthens our innovation ecosystem in North America. It’s a clear signal of our willingness to collaborate with partners who share our commitment to sustainability and reducing our environmental impact to create beauty that transforms the world.”
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Source: Geno
