The results of the Sustainable Beauty Awards are in, revealing who is leading the field for sustainable products, ingredients, packaging and industry leadership, as well as who is the biggest pioneer.
The results were announced at a dedicated ceremony in Paris earlier this month that was attended by around 200 senior executives from the beauty and personal care industry.
Over the years the team at event organiser Ecovia Intelligence has built the awards to become the biggest platform to celebrate sustainability achievements in the beauty arena, a trend that is also now one of the biggest driving forces in the industry.
A panel of experienced industry judges was asked to assess around 100 entries from all over the world, who were looking for criteria such as the most positive impact on the environment, being truly innovative and meeting consumer needs.
Below are the results, including the winner and runner, for each of the five categories:
New Sustainable Product
Keracol Dr. Craft (UK) secured the top prize for its hair care products made using blackcurrant pulp. Launched in June 2018, the sustainable hair care range is made from leftovers from the production of blackcurrant drinks.
EcoTan (Australia) was runner-up with its Hand and Nail Cream. Other finalists were Hair O'right Hinoki Scalp Exfoliating Gel, Olivia Care Shampoo Bar, and Rhodes Skincare Products.
Sustainable Ingredient
Ashland (USA) was the winner with Cb2 skin biofunctional. Launched in April, the material is a patchouli-derived skin cannabinoid receptor 2 (CB2) activator. The patchouli has been sourced from sustainable farms in Colombia.
Rahn Cellactive (Germany) was runner-up. The carbon-neutral cell booster is used in skin care and hair care products. IFF Lucas Meyer Cosmetics SKINectura, Intiki Myro PE, Pierre Fabre Green Native Expression of Aquatic Mint, and Sensient Cosmetic Technologies Natpure Xtra Longevity were the other finalists.
Sustainable Packaging
The winner was Henkel (Germany) with its social plastic initiative. It partnered with Plastic Bank to collect plastic waste from waterways to use in the packaging of its personal care & home care products.
PharmMatt (France) was runner-up. In June 2019, the company introduced recycled and compostable materials for its Frescoryl toothpaste tablets. Aveda, Bioaroma Crete, and Maiiro were the other finalists.
Sustainability Pioneer
AAK Personal Care (Sweden) received top prize for shea nut sustainable sourcing. Its Kolo Nafaso programme is having a positive impact on over 230,000 women shea collectors in Burkina Faso, Ghana and Ivory Coast.
Boticario Group (Brazil) got second prize for its packaging collection programme, the largest of its kind in Latin America. Hair O'right International, Naturamus, and Seppic (SERDEX) were the other finalists.
Sustainability Leadership
Hair O'right International (Taiwan) is the winner. The company has undertaken a number of green initiatives, such as carbon-neutral production, sustainable packaging, using food byproducts as raw materials, and developing certified hair care products.
Clariant (Germany) was the runner-up; it is working with partners to reduce the impacts of its ingredients. Other finalists were Heinz-Glas, REN Clean Skincare, and TCI Co.