- we create products that are safe for people, pets and the environment
- we follow the precautionary principle and the tenets of green chemistry
- we disclose ingredients
- we try to use materials from plants not petroleum
Plants Not Petroleum. We believe in using plants — which are a renewable resource — as the basis for our raw materials and ingredients. Many of the plant-derived ingredients we use can also be synthetically derived from non-renewable, petroleum sources. Reliance on finite fossil fuels is not a sustainable solution for the long-term and doesn't consider the needs of the next seven generations — our company's barometer of sustainability. In contemplating switching from a synthetic to a plant-based material, we are mindful that we may be encountering a new set of issues involving topics such as land degradation, agricultural chemicals, biodiversity and land conflicts which may require new sourcing strategies to address.
While the vast majority of our raw materials already come from plants and minerals, we use some ingredients such as preservatives and the plastic in our diapers that do not. Our product designers are hard at work redesigning and reformulating our products to increase their Renewable Carbon Index (RCI). Measuring the amount of carbon that comes from renewable vs. petroleum sources is one way of tracking the improvements we make in our products’ sustainability.
To help connect consumers with bio-based (plant-derived) products, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) launched a new bio-preferred certification program in 2011. Consistent with our commitment to improve the RCI of our products, we were among the first 11 companies to receive certification in April 2011 for 13 products. We have shied away from certification programs in the past but believe the USDA effort will educate consumers about bio-based ingredients and will help our products and our commitment to plants not petroleum stand out in the marketplace.
2010 Highlights: We increased the Renewable Carbon Index of many of our products while maintaining or improving their effectiveness. We also entered the personal care market with a new liquid Hand Wash containing a surfactant system that is 100% plant-derived. To further improve the sustainability of our products, we are deepening our relationships with our manufacturing partners and material suppliers. Our sourcing team improved the documentation around our raw material traceability and is working on strategies to reach our 2012 goal of obtaining 100% segregated and certified sustainable palm oil. Finally, we are placing our products into packages that are more sustainable than ever — with almost all of our bottles having the highest percentage of post-consumer recycled content in the industry.
