Plastic

Our product packaging is to a large extent made of plastic. Plastic has many advantages, such as the light weight, great stability and high flexibility with regard to colors and shapes. But the amount of plastic that is being used around the globe has by far exceeded planetary boundaries, especially in the area of fast-moving consumer goods that are purchased and consumed on a daily basis.
To counteract this, we at Beiersdorf are working intensively to optimize our product packaging according to the four sustainability principles of “avoid, reduce, reuse, and recycle”. And, we dedicated a focus field to this important topic: “For Fully Circular Resources”. It defines clear targets for a more sustainable packaging approach and anchors this within our new sustainability agenda CARE BEYOND SKIN.

Reduce: FLORENA FERMENTED SKINCARE

Naturalness, authenticity and sustainability are topics that are of high important to our consumers. With FLORENA FERMENTED SKINCARE we launched a series of natural cosmetic products in Italy and France at the end of 2019. All products are certified according to the international COSMOS-NATURAL-standard. The skin care line with high-quality ingredients of natural origin also includes a particularly sustainable packaging: for example, single-wall cream jars are used, which reduced the weight to only seven grams and thus to a sixth of the usual jar weight. On top of this, the cream jars are made of 70% recycled plastic (rPET) and the cardboard of the folding boxes is made of at least 70% recycled material as well. 

Reuse: Beiersdorf & Loop

Loop

Since the beginning of 2019 we have been part of Terracycle’s Loop purchasing platform. The initiative offers a so-called closed loop through refillable product packaging. It is currently being tested as an environmentally friendly and convenient solution for consumers.
Loop was launched in Paris in spring 2019. Beiersdorf is taking part with two products from the NIVEA Men range, which are available in porcelain bottles. The Loop process is quite simple: the product is ordered via the platform and delivered in a reusable package. After consumption the product is picked up from your home free of charge. The porcelain bottles are then cleaned, refilled and afterwards returned into the loop.

Recycle: NIVEA bottles made from recycled PET

Various products have been converted to recycled materials from the NIVEA brand, and many more will follow. With the NIVEA Face Care Cleansing Oils launched in 2019, a share of 25% recycled content in the packaging could be achieved. The NIVEA Shower Fresh Blends, which were launched in 2020, are entirely made from recycled PET. Switching from virgin plastic to the use of recycled material, a large amount of fossil-based virgin plastic can be saved each year. And we are establishing a material loop. In addition to the recycling of plastic materials, we also work on reducing our packaging materials significantly. This applies not only to NIVEA, but also to all other brands in our Group.

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