/ Inolex

A new sustainability role; Silver EcoVadis status; biodegradable packaging

PHILADELPHIA, PA, March 30, 20222022 is already proving to be a pivotal year for sustainability at Inolex which is central to its business. Three recent developments include creating a dedicated sustainability role, achieving Silver EcoVadis status, and launching biodegradable sample packaging, showing the firm’s commitment to seek and embrace Environmental, Social, Governance (ESG) best practices as a sustainable ingredient designer.

“While noteworthy on their own, together these initiatives signal a new level of focus and allocation of resources to address issues that are material to our company and to our partners within the beauty care supply chain,” notes Ted Laarkamp, VP Global Supply Chain.

Inolex officially established a newly defined sustainability role in January, promoting Audrey Wesson as the company’s Corporate Sustainability Manager. In this integral position, Wesson will lead the development of Inolex’s long term sustainability program while working collaboratively with leadership and across departments to set goals and deliverables for sustainability in line with the company’s vision.

“By creating a dedicated role to manage our sustainability platform, we will be better positioned to collect and analyze data, establish meaningful targets, and advance us on our journey to become a more responsible global citizen through the work that we do,” said Lisa Gandolfi, VP Marketing.

In addition to driving continuous improvements, Inolex is dedicated to communicating progress through standardized sustainability scoring platforms such as EcoVadis. Inolex was recently awarded Silver status by EcoVadis, a globally recognized tool to evaluate company sustainability principles in relation to daily business practices. A member since 2018, Inolex took the opportunity to improve its score by undergoing a mid-year reporting review, an assessment that is built on international sustainability standards, including the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) and the United Nations Global Compact, among others.

The Silver rating places Inolex in the 73rd percentile ranking of businesses across industries for each of the categories rated: Environment, Labor & Human Rights, Ethics, and Sustainable Procurement.

Inolex views its sustainable impact through a holistic lens. One example, completed earlier this year, is the transition of all sample shipments to new eco-friendly packaging. A combination of recycled, recyclable, biodegradable, and naturally-derived materials are now being utilized to pack ingredient samples and formulation prototypes from the company’s global sample center in Charlotte, USA. Traditional polystyrene foam used to protect glass jars has been replaced with biobased foam by Green Cell Foam, a material made from non-GMO corn starch that is fully biodegradable. A variety of upcycled and recycled paper has been implemented for padding and envelopes, as well as 100% biodegradable packing peanuts that dissolve in water. The packaging components offer more environmentally responsible disposal options to customers receiving Inolex ingredient samples.

“All of these initiatives are in step with continuously aligning business practices around ESG issues and demonstrate that we are making bolder moves to advance the sustainability of our company,” said Laarkamp.

The firm intends to launch its 2021 Sustainability Report in a GRI-informed format in the coming months.

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