Dove to slash virgin plastic with alternative materials, recycled plastic and refill technology

22 Oct 2019 --- Beauty industry heavyweight Dove has unveiled new initiatives and impact figures aiming to reduce the use of virgin plastic by more than 20,500 metric tons per year. The Unilever brand intends to reach this benchmark through the integrated use of alternative packaging materials, recycled plastic “where needed” and investing in refill technology. Dove highlights exceptions within its whole portfolio that are not fully 100 percent recycled, with expressed plans to reach the 100 percent benchmark “very soon.”

“Better recycling alone will not solve the plastics problems we face today. We must address plastic waste at the source,” says Sander Defruyt, New Plastics Economy Lead at the Ellen MacArthur Foundation. “This means eliminating the plastic items we don’t need; innovating the ones we do need so that all of them are reusable, recyclable or compostable; and circulating all those we use by reusing them, or recycling them into new products and packaging. Action is needed now, and on all of these fronts in parallel.”

Plastic pollution is being driven by a linear, single-use consumption model, notes Dove. To be part of the solution in creating a circular plastics economy, where plastics are reused and recycled, the brand has launched its “No, Better, Less Plastic” framework:

1. “No plastic.” Dove is eliminating the use of plastics where possible by using alternative materials and new packaging formats. Next year, its beauty bar single packs will be plastic-free globally. Development is underway to replace the plastic outer-wrap of its beauty bar multipacks with a zero-plastic material.
2. “Better plastic.” Dove is investing in more sustainable plastic choices to reduce the use of virgin plastic, supporting the creation of a circular economy for plastics. This includes the company’s launch of new 100 percent recycled plastic (PCR) bottles (“where technically feasible”), in North America and Europe by the end of 2019 and across all ranges (Dove, Dove Men+Care and Baby Dove). Dove continues to search for solutions where recycled plastic is not currently technically feasible, including for caps and pumps.
3. “Less plastic.” Dove will leverage minim, the technology behind its new reusable, refillable, stainless steel deodorant sticks. This technology minimizes waste by radically reducing the amount of plastic required. The launch date is not yet confirmed but work is well underway. Minim will be trialed as part of Terracycle’s LOOP platform initiative: a “first-of-its-kind,” minimal waste, direct-to-consumer shopping system. Loop has been trialing in a number of European cities this year, with future launches planned for the US. It has attracted a host of big-time brands such as PepsiCo, Unilever and Mondelēz International.

Unilever aims to reduce its absolute use of plastic packaging by more than 100,000 metric tons by 2025.Part of a bigger picture
In the past decade, Dove notes its avoidance of the use of more than 10,000 metric tons of virgin plastic. The announcement of its new initiatives is pegged as a significant contribution to achieving Unilever’s recently announced sustainability targets, which include:

• Halving Unilever’s use of virgin plastic, achieved through reducing its absolute use of plastic packaging by more than 100,000 metric tons and accelerating its use of recycled plastic.
• Helping collect and process more plastic packaging than it sells.

“At Dove, we are proud to have more than 100 initiatives ongoing around the world dedicated to tackling plastic waste. As one of the biggest beauty brands in the world, we have a responsibility to accelerate our progress even further,” says Richard Slater, Unilever Chief R&D Officer.

Dove highlights exceptions within its whole portfolio that are not produced using 100 percent recycled plastic, but still present a very high percentage in certain specific markets. The company has expressed plans to reach the 100 percent benchmark “very soon.” These plans for the exceptions are:

• In EU, Dove bottles with MuCell technology will be at 97 percent recycled plastic content by year end. Liquid hand wash, also with MuCell technology, will be at 97 percent recycled plastic. Dove had to postpone the implementation to Q3 2020 due to a lack of reliable, good quality recycled polypropylene available to allow for 100 percent application.
• The self-foaming and liquid hand wash formats in North America will be at 78 percent recycled plastic. “We continue to explore possible options to move these products to 100 percent,” says the company.
• Deodorant packs are made mainly of polypropylene. “Currently, there is not enough reliable, good quality recycled polypropylene available to allow for 100 percent application. So we have started with as much recycled plastic as we can incorporate, without negatively impacting the functional properties of the pack. The percentage of recycled plastic differs, depending on the structures (for example, sticks versus roll-ons) and the pack colors,” says Dove.
• Certain types of color-vignetted bottles in Dove’s Hair range in North America and the EU where no technical solution yet exists, but Dove is currently exploring ways to make a similar move.

“We know we’re not perfect, but we can’t afford to wait. We’re working to have the biggest positive impact we can, as quickly as we can, and empowering others to do the same,” concludes Marcela Melero, Dove Global Skin Cleansing Vice President.

By Benjamin Ferrer