While many industries are targeting net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, the consumer product brands that make soap, shampoo, lotion, and cosmetics are setting their sustainability goals at 2030, just 8 years away. There could be multiple reasons. One, some of the key CO2 emitting processes in these industries are easier to abate than those for sectors such as metals or fertiilizers. A second reason could be the fact that these being B2C sectors, the fast changing end user preferences for all things green can have a powerful effect on the competitive positioning and business success of these firms even in the short and medium term.
As personal care product makers go green, surfactants are at the center of their efforts. Surfactants are a prime target ingredient for making products more natural. These molecules play a central role in all types of personal care products, providing the grime-and-grease-removing power of face and body washes and holding disparate chemical phases together in lotions and makeup. Many surfactants also help moisturize and smooth skin and hair.
Many surfactants today are synthetic or semisynthetic. In response to a customer base that is increasingly concerned about sustainability, chemical firms are responding with biobased surfactants and ways to make existing products from biomass feedstocks.
Those goals are also broader than just carbon dioxide emissions. When people buy personal care products, brand owners say, they are also looking for biodegradability, low environmental impact, and supply chains that are sustainable and ethical. Biobased is the keyword that consumers want to see on a product to know it meets those standards.
