Estée Lauder targets paper bottle scalability after joining Pulpex Partner Consortium

17 Nov 2021 --- The Estée Lauder Companies (ELC) has entered the Pulpex partner consortium as the organization’s first prestige beauty company supporting the development of a recyclable paper bottle made from responsibly-sourced pulp.

Pulpex is a first-of-its-kind technology that creates bottles from wood pulp using FSC-certified renewable feedstocks from responsibly-managed forests.

The new paper bottle is designed to be widely recyclable in standard waste streams and intended to support ELC’s efforts to reduce the environmental impact of its packaging across the lifecycle.

“Exploring alternative materials and more responsible concepts in our packaging design is a strategic imperative, but we know we can’t do it alone. Scaling innovation will be key to driving sustainable packaging solutions,” says Daniel Ramos, senior vice president for global packaging at ELC.

Joining forces with industry titans
As a member of the Pulpex partner consortium, ELC joins a group of leading consumer packaged goods companies, including Diageo, Unilever, PepsiCo, GSK Consumer Healthcare and Castrol, committed to developing the paper bottle packaging.

The new paper bottle is designed to be widely recyclable in standard waste streams.The goal of the consortium is to help ensure the Pulpex bottle is quickly scaled and widely adopted across multiple product categories.

ELC is the consortium’s first prestige beauty partner, presenting an opportunity to scale the Pulpex paper bottling technology across its brand portfolio.

“Pulpex is fully committed to collaborating with partners across industries to create a more sustainable future,” says Scott Winston, CEO at Pulpex.

“We are thrilled to partner with ELC as the first leader in beauty to join our consortium of leading companies working to create innovative packaging solutions that are better for both our consumers and the planet.”

In similar developments, P&G’s Fabric & Home Care division is trialing a paper bottle for its Lenor fabric softener brand in partnership with The Paper Bottle Company (Paboco). The pilot will start in 2022 and span across Western Europe.

Corporate makeover
Scaling of this technology will support ELC’s efforts toward its global sustainable packaging goals, including the company’s latest commitment to reduce the amount of virgin petroleum plastic in its packaging to 50% or less by the end of calendar year 2030.

The company has also committed to use responsibly-sourced paper products whenever possible, with a goal of achieving 100% FSC-certified forest-based fiber cartons and 75% to 100% recyclable, refillable, reusable, recycled or recoverable packaging by 2025.

Earlier this year, ELC and specialty materials provider Eastman announced a global memorandum of understanding (MOU), supporting ELC’s 2025 sustainable packaging goals.

Last September, ELC collaborated with heat and cool surface technology provider Roctool to create more environmentally responsible packaging for Clinique’s luxury beauty bottles.

Other CPG companies, including Diageo, Unilever, PepsiCo, GSK Consumer Healthcare and Castrol, have committed to developing the paper bottle packaging.Greening up beauty sector
Other prestige brands this year have made moves to green up their portfolios, with Armani Beauty unveiling a refillable perfume bottle for its My Way perfume. The design of the fragrance bottle is in line with the Italian luxury brand’s five-year commitment to reducing its carbon footprint by 25%, along with achieving carbon neutrality for all its products.

Meanwhile, L’Oréal’s brand Biotherm reduced packaging waste by piloting its first refillable skin care bottle for the Life Plankton Elixir Blue Fountain serum.

LVMH Perfumes & Cosmetics collaborated with global specialty material provider Eastman to develop packaging that will eliminate the use of virgin plastic from its product lines. Moreover, LVMH is partnering with Canopy to support forest conservation.

The L’Occitane group pledged to source all plant-based ingredients from biodiversity-positive sources and reduce plastic used for its packaging by 10% by 2025. The move is part of its new guiding principles for its biodiversity strategy, the high point of its visit to the International Union for Conservation of Nature Congress in Marseille, France.

And recently, Dr. Suvi Haimi, CEO and co-founder of Sulapac, spoke to PackagingInsights about how balancing environmental sustainability with functionality and aesthetic beauty is crucial for the sector.

By Benjamin Ferrer

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