Cosmetics industry to develop new environmental impact scoring system

Henkel, L’Oréal, LVMH, Natura &Co and Unilever are joining forces to develop an industry-wide environmental impact scoring system for beauty products, similar to the Eco-Score.

A science-based system

The five cosmetics giants want to set up a cross-brand scoring system based on a science-based methodology. The aim is to provide consumers with clear, transparent and comparable information on the ecological impact of a product, taking into account its entire life cycle.

The voluntary system would be built around four basic principles: a shared methodology for measuring environmental impacts across the product life-cycle, a shared database of the environmental effects for standard ingredients and raw materials, a shared tool for calculating environmental impact per product, and an aligned scoring system allowing consumers to make comparisons easily.

The five also want to involve external scientists, academics and NGOs throughout the development process to ensure the integrity of the process. They also hope that as many other cosmetics companies as possible will join the initiative, writes CosmeticsDesign-Europe.

Consumers want transparency

“The new assessment and scoring system will aim to meet growing consumer demand for greater transparency about the environmental impact of cosmetic products – formula, packaging and usage. The objective is to improve the information that is available to consumers and enable them to make more sustainable consumption choices”, says the consortium.

The approach appears to be strongly inspired by the Eco-Score, developed in France, using a letter and colour combination to inform consumers at a glance about the environmental impact of a food product. The Eco-Score was introduced earlier this year by Colruyt in Belgium, and, in the meantime, Lidl and Carrefour have also picked up the system.