Eucerin eliminates 100% of packaging leaflets and commits to ambitious sustainability agenda

• As of this month, 80% of all Eucerin products around the globe leave the factory without leaflets – to be extended to 100% by July 2021
• Combined with additional packaging rework 175 tons of paper will be saved annually by 2025
• Eucerin’s recently enlarged, ambitious sustainability agenda includes numerous further initiatives in the field of packaging and formulas

Hamburg, July 7, 2020 – The dermocosmetics brand Eucerin has announced a significant expansion of its commitment to sustainability. The basis for this is the new, enlarged sustainability agenda with which Eucerin is assuming responsibility for the environment, society, and consumers. Eucerin thereby contributes to Beiersdorf’s overarching sustainability agenda “CARE BEYOND SKIN”, which was launched at the beginning of this year.

Under the new agenda, Eucerin will eliminate all packaging leaflets by July 2021. This will save 20 million leaflets worldwide each year – equivalent to 47 metric tons of paper. As of this month, with 80% of the global product portfolio now produced without package inserts, the first milestone has been achieved. “We carefully examined which information on the package inserts is essential, taking into account both legal requirements and consumer interests. All relevant information will be retained. However, to save paper, it is to be found on the product packaging or alternatively on the Eucerin website,” explains Wiebke Maerker-Scheel, Senior Manager Derma Sustainability at Beiersdorf.

Since the production of paper consumes a lot of wood, water, and energy, Eucerin also intends to implement further measures to reduce paper consumption. For example, AtopiControl Balm will be sold in pharmacies without the box from September 2020 on. Other products and series are to follow suit in the coming years. This will save an additional 90 tons of paper per year by 2025. Moreover, the brand is testing new carton material for its boxes in order to further reduce the demand for paper. All in all, by 2025 the brand expects to save around 175 tons of paper annually compared to 2019.

However, paper reduction alone won’t be all. “We believe in the life-changing power of dermatological skin care – but we also want to make our contribution in other respects. That’s why we are not only focusing on paper reduction. One of the main goals of our current sustainability agenda is to support a circular economy by reducing the amount of virgin plastic as well as by increasing the recyclability and reusability of our packaging,” Cornelius Becker, Global Head of Derma Cosmetics, says. “In addition to our packaging we are also constantly evaluating and further developing our formulas to meet the needs of both our consumers and the environment. In this way we commit ourselves to clinically proven and effective yet unobjectionable dermocosmetic solutions. In addition, we are developing programs to further promote social inclusion for individuals and groups affected by skin diseases. In this way we are taking responsibility for the environment, our consumers, and society.”

Achievements have also been made in the area of formulas. For example, the entire Eucerin portfolio is free of nylon since the beginning of 2020. In addition, as part of the expansion of the brand agenda, further sustainability targets up to 2025 are clearly formulated and quantified:

• By 2023 all Eucerin product formulas will be free of microplastic.*/**
• By 2025 Eucerin will save 175 tons of paper annually compared to 2019.
• By 2025 Eucerin will use at least 30% recycled plastic to reduce the amount of virgin plastic.
• By 2025 Eucerin will have substantially increased the recyclability and reusability of the brands’ packaging to support a circular economy.

^{* Exclusive over-the-counter (OTC) formulations.
** According to UNEP definition.}

More information about the new Beiersdorf sustainability agenda CARE BEYOND SKIN, which sets the basis for Eucerin’s sustainability actions, can be found at www.beiersdorf.com/sustainability.