Zero-waste hero: Four LG H&H brands launch solid personal care products to boost eco-credentials

By developing solid products LG Household & Health Care (LG H&H) said it could reduce its reliance on plastic packaging.

For instance, its beauty bars are packaged in paper while the powdered toothpaste is packaged in a metal jar.

Furthermore, the solid format would help to reduce water consumption, transportation costs and packaging.​

According to the company, a 100-gram beauty bar can just as long as a bottle of 600-gram liquid soap.

The company worked with Donggubat, a social enterprise that hires people with special needs and specialises in the production of solid personal care products.

Donggubat has previously collaborated with Olive Young, Atomy, Aromantica, and Unpa to create various solid beauty products. It also manufactures and sells its own solid beauty products.

In this instance, it partnered with LG H&H to develop a body and face bar for Veilment, shampoo bars for Dr. Groot and Elastin and a powdered toothpaste for Himalayan Pink Salt.

According to LG H&H, the formulations are biodegradable and utilise a range of ingredients, such as ceramide, hyaluronic acid, peptides as well as botanicals.

Under the Dr. Groot brand, the company developed a dandruff shampoo bar for weakened hair. The formula contains biotin and caffeine as well as botanicals like houttuynia cordata, or heart leaf.

Additionally, it also uses alpha-hydroxy acids and beta-hydroxy acids as well as its patented anti-dandruff ingredient to work against dandruff.

As its name suggests, the Himalayan Pink Salt powdered toothpaste contains Himalayan pink salt to prevent bad breath and gum disease.

Going green

LG H&H is a South Korean personal care conglomerate that owns a host of international beauty brands including History of Whoo, The Face Shop and Su:m37.

The K-beauty giant said its zero-waste product launches reflects the growing eco-friendly consumption movement among its beauty consumers.

These launches are in line with LG H&H’s social governance (ESG) goals to promote resource recycling and promote a circular economy.

The company has set a goal to use 200 tonnes of recycled plastic in its products by 2025.

This follows the company’s foray into upcycled beauty in September, when it signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Korean start-up Urban Miners to explore how to recycle discarded coffee grounds as raw materials for its cosmetics products.

LG H&H also developed the Perioe Hempharmx Toothbrush which is made from an eco-friendly resin made from raw materials extracted from corn starch that is naturally biodegradable.

Additionally, it is aiming to increase the number of clean beauty products in its portfolio.

By 2025, it expects 50% of products to be clean beauty products – this means the products will have to be mindful of its environmental footprint.

The company completed the product line-up of its first-ever vegan make-up brand, Belif x VDL in November, with the addition of seven more products to the existing line-up.