Green science and refillable products: zero impact beauty
“I firmly believe that science will save the planet.” Ana Kljuic is vice president of research and innovation (R&I) at L’Oréal for the Future and Green Sciences. A genetics and dermatology researcher at Colombia University, she has created nine patents signed by L’Oréal. She looks to the future with confidence - she defines herself as “a curious optimist” - and it seems she has never stopped believing in the possibility of building a more sustainable world. With L’Oréal, “we are actively working to transform ingredients through green sciences. Currently, 66% come from natural or recycled sources,” she explains. “We are living in a complex but extremely exciting moment, in which nature, science and technology intersect, allowing us to invest more and more in green sciences and to use nature to create new ingredients and offer unprecedented performances, both cosmetically and environmentally,” she says.
Green ScienceKljuic coordinates a team of scientists, with at least two missions: “Translate into concrete actions the sustainability objectives that the Group has set for 2030 and deepen the impact of our ingredients, to identify new solutions to develop”.
A tangible example is the production of Vitamin C: “For years it was produced synthetically, today, thanks to biotechnology and green chemistry, we have one of natural origin”. The manager explains that examples of this type will be increasingly frequent, also thanks to the progress of biotechnology, which “today is based a lot on bacteria, but we are exploring the use of microalgae, plants and parts of them, such as roots, to produce new components”.
If you ask the researcher what scientific goal she dreams of achieving, she replies: “The biggest challenge is integration. We have projects in the field of sustainable agriculture, biotechnology, green chemistry. The goal is to connect all these strands to build a portfolio of ingredients that is entirely, or mostly, of natural origin, recycled, traceable and that offers new experiences and performances to our consumers,” she concludes.
But all this is only part of it. Making the cosmetics industry more sustainable involves production, transportation, and packaging. This was discussed in Paris at L'Oréal For the Future, the event with stakeholders and associations during which the French giant presented the progress of the sustainability program presented in 2020. For the occasion, Le Visionnaire, the historic headquarters between rue Saint-Honoré and rue Royale, is transformed into a path that marks the stages for reducing the impact on the planet. Foreground: nature. Second: community. Third: circularity. Four: climate. Among the objectives of the L'Oréal For the Future program, by 2030 the multinational aims to reduce scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas emissions by 57% compared to 2019, while scope 3 (deriving from purchased goods and services, transportation and distribution) by 28%. Furthermore, sustainably source at least 90% of bio-based materials used in formulas and packaging and use 75% ingredients of natural origin or recycled materials and 100% recycled water in factories.
Open InnovationTo achieve these goals, L'Oréal, as shown in the various exhibitions set up, has focused on an open innovation model, which aims to "fish" new solutions from the ecosystem of startups and innovative companies operating in the area, with which to weave partnerships and alliances. A model that has been strengthened with an investment of one hundred million euros in five years.
Distilling the scent of flowers with airTo give just a few examples, among the technologies developed, there is Osmobloom, created in partnership with Cosmo International Fragrances. It is an extraction system that captures the scent of flowers without damaging them. This method uses a flow of air to collect the scented molecules, allowing aromas to be extracted even from flowers that were previously impossible to distill, such as lily of the valley and hyacinth. The first fragrances created with this innovation, including tuberose, have already been used in perfumes such as Valentino Private Talk. Staying in the perfume sector, the glass bottles of high-end products are made by Pochet, a company in Clichy specialized in the production of packaging for the perfumery, cosmetics and make-up industries. The company, partly supported by public subsidies and the support of L'Oréal, has progressively reduced emissions by 30% since 2014, with the goal of halving them by 2033. Recently, a major step forward: the inauguration of an electric furnace.
The campaign for the refillBy 2030, L'Oréal plans to use only recycled or bio-based plastic for packaging. Among the initiatives, the possibility for consumers to refill bottles and packages at home or at points of sale, to limit the use of single-use containers. The Group has in fact recently launched a campaign aimed at promoting the use of refillable beauty products. The initiative involves several brands, including L'Oréal Paris, in the perfumery, skincare, haircare and make-up sectors. In short, real dispensers will be installed in the points of sale (in Italy, for now, available at Sephora in the shopping centers of Marcianise and Arese), where, whoever wants, can "tap" their favorite shampoo, cream, perfume. According to the multinational's estimates, using refills allows a 73% reduction in the use of glass and a 66% reduction in that of plastic.
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