Rewriting beauty through sustainability

The first day at the Sustainability Zone Theatre offered a rich and varied programme - spanning earth longevity, upcycling, human rights, active multifunctionals, impact measurement tools, and the data strategies suppliers are using to optimise their footprints and supply chains. The keynote came from The Body Shop, a pioneer in fair trade ingredients, sharing the enduring legacy of a brand that helped define what responsible beauty looks like.

Lehvoss opened with a compelling look at how actives can deliver a better earth longevity profile by using fewer natural resources, and three very different strategies illustrated this well. The first is biotech: producing 1 kg of ginseng exosomes via conventional cultivation would require 400 hectares of land, whereas the same quantity can be produced in a contained bioreactor. The second is timed harvesting: collecting seaweed only at peak season allows the plant to recover fully without disrupting biodiversity. The third is upcycling: betulin sourced from wood waste bypasses direct land use entirely in its production.

AAK, sponsor of the Sustainability Zone, provided an important overview of human rights regulations and their implications for the beauty industry. The Forced Labour Regulation applies across all companies, meaning brands must now work with suppliers who can provide robust traceability and validated labour practices throughout their raw material supply chains. This is no longer a future consideration - preparation needs to start now.

The Upcycled Beauty Company offered one of the more thought-provoking presentations of the day, challenging assumptions about what "upcycled" actually means. Is tallow - a by-product of the meat industry - upcycled, or simply one of many materials that can be derived from animals? The question of plant-derived versus animal-derived upcycled ingredients (think rice or cherry versus tallow, collagen, or lanolin) remains unresolved, largely because there is still no working definition of "upcycled" in the beauty industry.

For Anna Crovetto, the answer lies in provenance, origin, and demonstrable skin benefit. Upcycled cherry seed oil, for example, has been shown to be more antioxidant than its conventional equivalent, and comes with a transparent supply chain - a meaningful combination.

Sonneborn presented a range of plant-derived alkanes spanning a full viscosity spectrum - from low-viscosity fluids through to waxes - offering a credible alternative to silicones, which face restrictions not only in Europe but also in South Korea. Produced via a patented technology, they carry a significantly lower product carbon footprint: 60% lower on a cradle-to-gate basis and 68% lower cradle-to-grave. Sensory evaluation by a trained panel demonstrated good correlation with cyclic silicones, supporting their use as drop-in replacements, and volatility profiles are comparable to dimethicone.

Breanna Lujan honoured the legacy that Anita Roddick built, and the values The Body Shop continues to carry forward: a commitment to natural ingredients, community partnership, and the empowerment of women and girls.

The brand's sustainability timeline is extensive, from its partnership with the Save the Rainforest campaign in 1989, to the Ethical Trading Initiative in 1998, to becoming an RSPO member in 2004. Today, direct partnerships with cooperatives around the world remain central to the model. In Tungteia, Africa, 650 women produce shea butter - the brand's most-used ingredient. An Italian cooperative in the Cilento region applies regenerative agroforestry to olive cultivation. And their Plastic for Change initiative has captured 3,279 metric tonnes of plastic waste for reuse in packaging.

Swedish Algae Factory made a persuasive case for the "less is more" philosophy, demonstrating how a single ingredient can perform six distinct roles in a cosmetic formulation: SPF boosting, antipollution protection via a breathable barrier, deep hydration, soft focus with an instant effect, smart release, and detox. The result is an ingredient ideally suited to moisturisers, SPF products, urban skincare, and colour cosmetics alike - delivering meaningful multifunctionality while shortening the ingredient list, something consumers increasingly value.

Evonik presented an emollient that brings together three of the industry's most significant trends - upcycling, biotech, and sensory performance - in a single ingredient. Made by fermenting three different European side streams, the result is a beautifully silky emollient (INCI: Butyl Oleate). Its enzymatic manufacturing process operates at lower temperatures than conventional chemical synthesis, which translates to lower colour, reduced odour, and a lower peroxide value. With a genuinely low carbon footprint (derived from upcycled biomass) and a seductive sensory profile, it presents a compelling alternative to silicones.

Provital has developed a new tool, Sustainable ProviRating, designed to assess the environmental impact of cosmetic formulations and highlight areas for improvement. The tool is grounded in planetary boundary thinking, accounting for climate change, biodiversity, water systems, land use, acidification, and more, alongside eco-design principles.

The methodology draws primarily on cradle-to-gate LCA data from the Ecoinvent database (80% of the tool weighting), with traceability and natural origin contributing 10%, and sustainable processes and upcycling making up the remaining 10%. It allows formulators to see precisely which planetary boundaries are most impacted by a given formula, and which ingredients or processes are driving that impact, so that targeted improvements can be made. Planned for launch later this year, it promises to open up a new dimension of formulation intelligence for Provital's customers.

Givaudan Active Beauty turned the spotlight on what is arguably the beauty industry's most-used active: hyaluronic acid, with 500 tonnes produced annually and featured in 15,000 product launches each year. Already produced via biofermentation, Givaudan has taken this a step further with a high-precision fermentation strategy that integrates low-molecular-weight HA directly into the process, eliminating the need for a separate hydrolysis step. The result is higher yields, significantly reduced water and electricity consumption, and an LCA showing a 91% reduction in impact score.

Hallstar shared the sustainability story behind its patented oleo-extraction technology, used in the production of its Oleactif active range. Combining microwaves and ultrasounds, the process is highly efficient: fast, high-yielding, low in electricity consumption, and requiring no water. All biomass is valorised, while dedicated local supply chain programmes ensure biodiversity is respected throughout. Their latest innovation brings ubiquitin from valorised birch wood to the beauty industry for the first time.

Cargill presented its data-driven sustainability strategy, applied across a global production network that spans oils and butters, starches, rheology modifiers, and glycerin - each with its own distinct supply chain complexity. The data approach helps pinpoint the most critical areas for action, not only on biodiversity and greenhouse gas emissions, but on human rights as well. UEBT acts as a third-party validator for biodiversity and human rights, while LCA data is used to identify hotspots across upstream Scope 3, Scope 1 and 2, and downstream Scope 3 emissions.

Two contrasting examples illustrated the value of this granular insight: jojoba cultivation in Egypt faces high water depletion risk, leading to poor crop yields; in Peru, the irrigation systems powering jojoba plantations draw heavily on electricity. Tailored action plans have been developed for each - introducing renewable electricity in one location and a new precision irrigation system in the other, demonstrating that effective sustainability strategy must be responsive to local conditions.

Biotara closed the day with a journey into the Amazonian rainforest, showcasing a portfolio of sustainably sourced emollients: Andiroba, Jambu, Cupuaçu, and Tucumã. Their latest launch, Amazonian Lipid Architecture (ALA), offers a natural sensory alternative to petrolatum.

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