To meet increasing customer demands for sustainability, leading cosmetics manufacturer AmorePacific announced it will be “expanding the development of sustainable products every year”.
In order to gain customer trust, brand loyalty and credibility within the sustainability marketplace, sustainability must be present throughout the entire production and marketing process.
“AmorePacific is strengthening sustainability throughout the full lifecycle of products – from raw materials, sourcing, research & development, and customer use, to recycle and waste management,” added Park.
Evolving product ranges
Park emphasised the importance of strict criteria that governs products descriptions. Currently, the South-Korean company has divided its products into three categories.
- Customer-friendly products that have received Ecocert or external organic certification
- Environmentally-friendly products that refer to carbon footprint products, which have received the certified carbon footprint labelling from Korea environmental Industry & Technology Institute (KEITI); recycled products with packaging made from recycled materials and refillable and replaceable products, which refer to products that are refillable or packaged in replaceable containers
- Socially-friendly products
As the cosmetics manufacturing giant continues to emphasise the importance of products that not only appeal to consumers and the wider society but that also tackle sustainability concerns including carbon footprint, recycling and refillable/replaceable containers, it paves the way for other international companies or smaller APAC brands to follow suit.
“One consideration when developing sustainable products is to use better raw materials,” added Park. When selecting and purchasing plant-based materials, the safety of raw materials, environmental preservation and the contribution to local communities are key considerations for the company.
To evolve and grow their sustainable impact, AmorePacific is now seeking to conserve biodiversity and retain it for sustainable use by “developing new plant species and conducting restoration of indigenous native resources, promoting the value through sustainable research and innovation”.
Sustainable production
AmorePacific’s new production facility in Malaysia will also seek to meet the cosmetic manufacturing demands of the APAC region.
Cosmetics projects, including dermatologists, molecular and cell biologists, as well as primate research project and biodiversity foundation will receive ongoing support.
“The potential is even greater when interdisciplinary research is performed, as this has often led to serendipitous results in the past. By nurturing bioscience research, the Suh Kyung Bae Foundation aims to create a solid foundation that can advance humanity, our products and sustainability,” said Park.
In a bid to build upon the Korean beauty industry’s developments, AmorePacific hopes to “create a solid resource by supporting innovative biosciences research that has singularity and ingenuity for a long period of time”.
Jun-Seong Park, Heritage Material Research Team Leader, AmorePacific, will be speaking on Putting Sustainability into Action at the Sustainable Cosmetics Summit at 9.10am on 14th November 2016.
For more information on the Sustainable Cosmetics Summit in Hong Kong on 14th - 15th November 2016, visit www.sustainablecosmeticssummit.com