How is L'Oréal Using Biotech to Boost Sustainable Sourcing?

The beauty and personal care industry's carbon footprint is significantly impacted by sourcing raw materials, contributing to 30-50% of its emissions.

L'Oréal embarks on a mission to revolutionise this through a pioneering partnership aimed at researching, developing, and producing an increased amount of bio-ingredients alongside Abolis and Evonik.

“We are proud to invest in Abolis and expand our collaboration, working together as a tight ecosystem alongside our historical partner, Evonik,” says Barbara Lavernos, Deputy Chief Executive Officer in charge of Research, Innovation and Technology at L’Oréal Group.

“By mobilising our respective companies’ research, innovation and manufacturing capabilities and expertise, we are building an end-to-end value chain that we believe has tremendous potential to be a game-changer in bio-based ingredients for beauty.”

L’Oréal Group: Sustainable beauty

The French global leader in personal care, L’Oréal Group, boasts a workforce exceeding 90,000 and reported earnings of €41.18bn (US$45.85bn) in 2023.

Home to 37 renowned brands like Garnier, NYX Cosmetics and Maybelline, L’Oréal is steadfast in reducing its industrial greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.

Over two decades, it has actively pursued energy efficiency, renewable energy use, and set explicit targets.

Its ambition stretches to powering all sites with 100% renewable energy by 2025 and slashing GHG emissions from product transportation by half come 2030.

Meet Evonik

Evonik, a titan in the specialty chemicals domain from Germany, extends its operations across over 100 countries. The company's 2023 revenue tallied at €15.3bn (US$17bn) with a workforce topping 33,000.

Evonik's proactive climate stance is articulated through its GHG reduction targets, attested by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) to align with a 'well below 2 degrees' trajectory. 

Bernhard Mohr, Managing Director of Evonik Venture Capital, says: “With Abolis’ competencies in strain development and metabolic engineering, and our collaboration with L'Oréal, we aim to unlock new opportunities in cosmetics.”

About Abolis Biotechnologies

Since its inception in 2014, French biotech firm Abolis Biotechnologies aspires to be at the vanguard of manufacturing's ecological transition.

The company's partnership with L’Oréal and Evonik, solidified during its 2024 investment round where it garnered €35m (US$38.9m), is poised to make waves.

Samantha Etienne, Global General Manager of BOLD, L’Oréal’s venture capital fund, says: “This investment highlights our belief in Abolis’ potential to create a more sustainable future across various industries, including beauty.”

How does the partnership boost sustainability in the supply chain?

L'Oréal sets its sights high, aiming for 95% of its formulas' ingredients to be bio-based, derived from abundant resources, or from circular processes by 2030.

The journey with Abolis began in 2019, which led to an expanded lab setup in 2022. These developments have paved the way for further expansion of this collaboration.

"We are thrilled to receive this round of funding which will allow us to take the next step in pushing the boundaries of innovation in biotechnology," says Cyrille Pauthenier, CEO of Abolis Biotechnologies. 

"Our collaboration with L’Oréal and Evonik will empower us to create groundbreaking solutions tailored to drive the sustainable transformation of the industries we serve including beauty, nutrition and healthcare.”

With L'Oréal Group investing over €1bn (US$1.1bn) in R&I annually, a significant portion is dedicated to Green Sciences, primarily focusing on biotechnologies. 

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