Global leaders in sustainability and innovation

The global consumer products giant Procter & Gamble is one of the world’s best known and revered companies with one of the strongest portfolios of trusted, quality leadership brands. Philip Yorke reports on the latest developments in a company that sets the trends and benchmarks for the industry. With a clear focus on innovation and sustainability it is leading the field in its ambitious programme of bio-based product labels and environmental leadership.

Procter & Gamble (P&G) was founded in 1837 and has grown to become a truly global phenomenon, with operations in more than 70 countries and serving over 5 billion people around the world. It has one of the strongest portfolios of leading consumer brands including Ariel, Always, Braun, Gillette, Lenor, Olay and Pantene to name but a few. P&G’s unique organisational structure is one of the key reasons behind its ability to continually grow and achieve new targets. It is able to combine the benefits that come from being a global $80 billion company with a dedicated local focus. This is vital as it enables the company to tailor its products and operations to meet the differing needs of its customers anywhere in the world.

The company’s four main business units are: Global Beauty, Global Baby, Feminine and Family Care, Global fabric and home care and Global Health and Grooming. P&G’s products include many of its most recognisable brands in the areas of beauty and personal care, feminine hygiene and health and grooming. These include Gillette, Head& Shoulders and Gucci fragrances. One of the most recent product launches in its beauty sub-division is its new Herbal Essences Naked Collection.

Integrated sustainability

In a recent sustainability report the company said “sustainability is integrated into every aspect of the way we do business, however there is much more that needs to be done.” Martin Riant, P&G’s group president, and executive sponsor for sustainability, said, “We have been dedicated to driving change within our own company by partnering with others to deliver standards and practices that make a difference. We have a long track record of doing the right thing, from pioneering breakthroughs such as compaction, integrating recycled content into packaging and supply-chain innovation. We are focused on our usage of energy, including our need to help drive consumer behaviour change with initiatives such as our Cold Water washing campaign, reduced packaging, reduced water usage and increased recycled content in our packaging.

“Our focus is also to bring more renewable energy into our plants to find substitutes for petroleum derived raw materials and to ensure responsible and sustainable sourcing for renewable materials, including Palm Oil (PO), wood pulp and paper packaging. We know that protecting the earth and giving back to those in need is a responsibility and a business opportunity. We plan to accelerate our delivery of these objectives by ensuring the full integration of our sustainability initiatives within the strategies and plans of our 10 core businesses.”

Since 2010 P&G has been guided by its vision to achieve 100 per cent renewable energy use and 100 per cent renewable or recyclable materials for all its products and packaging, with zero consumer and manufacturing waste going to land fill sites. Its recent announcement has seen the addition of new goals for 2020, with an emphasis on water conservation and product packaging.

Expanding biomass renewable energy

P&G has invested in a new biomass plant that will be operational in 2017 and will significantly increase the company’s use of renewable energy, thus moving it closer to its goal of obtaining 30 per cent of

its total energy from renewable sources by 2020 and 100 per cent one day in the future. Currently P&G obtains 8 per cent of its energy from renewable sources including wind, solar, geothermal and biomass. The new project will get the company almost half way to its 2020 goal. “As this project enables us to operate one of our largest global plants with a renewable energy source, it will reduce the environmental footprint of two leading brands, Bounty and Charmin. We see this as a win for our business, consumers, partners and the environment,” said Riant.

The project has been in the works for almost two years and has involved more than a dozen partners. The $200 million plant will be built, owned and operated Constellation, a leading Retail supplier of power, natural gas and energy products and services, and is a subsidiary of the Exelon Corporation. In addition to producing steam for P&G, the plant will also create electricity that Constellation will sell to local utility, Georgia Power, who will then share it with residents across the state.

Len Sauers, vice-president, Global Sustainability added, “The environmental focus on this year’s report is on impacting on climate change. We’ve made meaningful progress, but there is still much more to do. P&G recognises the scientific consensus linking greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and climate change. As a global citizen, we are concerned about the negative consequences of climate change, and we believe prudent and cost-effective action by governments, industry and consumers to reduce emissions to the atmosphere is necessary.

“We’ve made important progress in our efforts to address climate change. We have reviewed our initial reforestation plans from our palm suppliers and are working together to ensure robust, time-bound policies and systems are in place to meet our require-

ments. We are also partnering with industry experts to develop new approaches to help the many thousands of smallholders in our supply chain comply with our no-deforestation objectives.”

Pioneering bio-based products

For more than a decade, Tide® has been committed to developing detergents that provide environmental benefits like energy and water saving. P&G’s latest innovation in the company’s commitment to sustainability is Tide Purclean™, the world’s first bio-based detergent with the acknowledged cleaning power of Tide. With a 65 per cent bio-based formula, Tide Purclean™ delivers the same cleaning power, stain removal and colour care found in Tide Original Liquid Laundry Detergent. With every step in the product lifecycle, from sourcing to manufacturing to use and disposal, Tide is committed to making a difference. The detergent is produced at a zero manufac-

turing waste to landfill facility using 100 per cent renewable wind power electricity and the bottle is also 100 per cent recyclable. It is formulated to perform in cold water conditions to help save energy, but can be used at any water temperature.

“We know we cannot positively impact on the planet with a laundry detergent if people will not use it,” said Sundar Raman, vice-president, North America Fabric Care. “Many people have yet to embrace laundry detergents with bio-based ingredients because they feel there is a trade-off when it comes to cleaning performance, so we designed our bio-based formula to provide more of the environmental benefits people increasingly seek, without compromising the trusted cleaning power of Tide. This is our first step with bio-based ingredients and while we know we have much to learn, we hope that Tide Purclean will set a new standard for eco-friendly detergents,”

Genius unveiled

Recently at the GSMA World Congress in Barcelona, P&G unveiled its latest innovation in oral care: the Oral-B Genius, the first of its kind and Oral-B’s most intelligent brushing system to date. P&G’s Oral B Genius has set a new standard in the industry and is claimed to be the next big thing after the introduction of the electric toothbrush, as it helps to eliminate the wrong behaviours in brushing.

The new Oral-B Genius features ground-breaking Position Detection Technology that combines cutting-edge motion sensor technology located in the brush, and video recognition using the smartphone’s camera to track areas being brushed so that no zone is missed. These features combined with the Oral-B OscillatingRotating-Pulsating technology and unique round brush head helps users improve their oral health. Oral-B Genius includes best-in-class product features, making it the most intelligent brushing system available that helps consumers smarten their daily brushing routines. n

For further information about P&G’s latest innovative products and sustainability programmes visit: www.pg.com