The Brazilian beauty giant - which encompasses the brands Avon, Natura, The Body Shop and Aesop - has unveiled a comprehensive sustainability plan for the next 10 years. The plan includes actions to tackle issues such as the climate crisis, the Amazon deforestation, the defence of Human Rights and the creation of a circular economy and features three main pillars:
(1) Climate change and the Amazon
During the next ten years, the group intends to achieve Net Zero carbon emissions for its four brands, tracking emissions throughout its entire value chain and that of its suppliers; from extraction of raw ingredients to packaging disposal.
The group will also enforce the Nagoya Protocol and payments of ABS (access and benefit sharing), to prevent biodiversity loss.
In addition, Natura &Co’s plan also aims to step up the actions of the brands, especially Natura, in the Amazon region.
(2) Human Rights
Natura &Co will increase diversity by 30% among its managing teams, taking into consideration ethnic diversity, sexual diversity, and gender identity, the socio-economically disadvantaged, and the physically and mentally disabled.
The group also sets up a target of 50% women in leadership positions by 2023. Natura &Co will also guarantee gender parity and equal pay by 2023 among it is entire workforce
Regarding supply chains, Natura &Co will enforce full traceability and/or certification by 2025. In addition, the group will push dedicated programs for critical ingredients in the coming years, specifically for palm oil, mica, alcohol, cotton, paper and soy.
(3) Circularity economy
The group aims to have 100% of its packaging materials either reusable, recyclable, or composable by 2030. It also plans to use 50% of recycled plastic and offsetting the equivalent amount of packaging where recycling infrastructure does not exist to reach 100% responsible disposal of plastics.
As far as product formulas are concerned, the group intends to use of 95% renewable ingredients and 95% biodegradable formulas by 2030 across all its four brands.
"We understand the critical moment we live in right now and the role that companies need to play to engage themselves and commit to a better, more sustainable and more inclusive society. We still need to do so much more to be the generation that restores our planet and protects its people," said Roberto Marques, Executive Chairman of the Board and Group CEO of Natura &Co.
The crisis linked to the Covid-19 pandemic does not seem to dampen the ambitions of the main players in the cosmetics industry regarding sustainability. This week, the Unilever group also announced new targets in this field, including a zero carbon emission target for its products by 2039.
