Unilever innovates durable, reusable and refillable packaging to help eliminate waste

Unilever today unveiled reusable packaging innovations across nine of its brands, including four new product formats. The new products will be trialled on Loop™, a global, first-of-its-kind, waste-free shopping system announced today.

Bringing together a coalition of consumer goods companies, along with international recycling leader TerraCycle, Loop™ is an innovative new business model for premium durable packaging which is delivered directly to the consumer, returned and refilled. The platform also offers the opportunity to work with others at scale to test reuse models and shift consumer behaviour, which will help make circular packaging systems commercially viable.

Premium skincare brand REN Clean Skincare, Hellmann’s, Love Beauty and Planet, Love Home and Planet and Seventh Generation will trial new reusable packaging made from aluminium and glass.

Four Unilever brands will also be the first to test new formats within the Loop™ system. World leading deodorant brands Dove, Rexona (known as Sure in the UK and Degree in the US) and AXE (known as Lynx in the UK), together reaching over one billion people globally every year, will test a premium, refillable deodorant stick called minim™. Made from stainless steel, the design is minimal, compact and sustainable, offering a new consumer experience without any unnecessary materials. Dependent on usage, the product will last on average one month, with the packaging designed to last at least 100 cycles. This means that each pack is expected to last about eight years, with the potential to save up to 100 packs from being thrown away.

Oral care brand Signal unveiled a new product format with new refillable toothpaste tablets called Tooth Tabs. The innovation also enables consumers to brush their teeth using less water: simply chew, brush as usual, rinse and smile. Zero waste, zero hassle and with a huge benefit for the planet.

Unilever’s participation in Loop™ complements its existing efforts to create a plastic system that works and a packaging system that is truly circular by design. In 2017, Unilever committed to all of its plastic packaging being reusable, recyclable or compostable by 2025. Good progress has been made against these targets, with absolute packaging volumes flat since 2010, despite the business growing significantly over this period. However, Unilever is determined to further reduce its use of single-use plastics.

Alan Jope, CEO of Unilever said: “We want to put an end to the current “take-make-dispose” culture and are committed to taking big steps towards designing our products for re-use. We’re proud to be a founding partner of Loop, which will deliver our much-loved brands in packaging which is truly circular by design.”

Unilever brands participating in Loop:

Together Rexona, Dove and AXE reach over a billion people every year. The smallest change in our product has the ability to make a real impact. So we joined forces to create minim™. Our first deodorant to be circular by design, made from stainless steel and developed to last forever.

Our contribution to this generation is to help remove single-use plastics, to create minimum waste, but with maximum care and protection. minim™ will last you a full month, but instead of throwing the pack away, our partner Loop will simply refill it for you, without waste, without hassle but with a big benefit for the planet. This means that every minim™ purchased has the potential to save 96 packs from being thrown away.

Join us today and go minim™ and be one of the first to be part of our little revolution to help bring an end to single-use plastics.

Discover our eco oral care revolution with new Signal Integral 8 Tooth Tabs. The goodness of our Signal Integral 8 toothpaste, in a tablet format. No added water. For twice daily use just like your normal toothpaste. Simply chew, brush as usual, rinse and smile. Available in a fully recyclable and refillable jar for zero pack or product waste. Less water, less waste. For a sustainable oral care choice.

Love Beauty and Planet is a beauty brand that believes that small acts of love make the planet a little cleaner, greener and more beautiful. Love Beauty and Planet delivers brilliant care for your hair and body while carefully evaluating every step of our products’ lifecycles with the aim of leaving the planet a little more beautiful than we found it. From volumizing to soothing and moisturizing to refreshing, Love Beauty and Planet has options for a variety of hair and skin needs and desired benefits. We take our impact on the planet very seriously, so we will hold ourselves accountable by tracking and publishing the greenhouse gas, waste and water footprints made in creating and distributing our beauty products. We offer shampoo, conditioner, body wash and hand wash as part of this partnership with Loop™.

Love Home and Planet is a newly launched home care brand which is designed with sustainability at its heart. Inspired by the success of its sister brand, Unilever’s Love Beauty and Planet, it is designed for people who desire products that deliver uncompromised efficacy, delightful sensorial experiences and stand for a deeper purpose that resonates with them. Our products are vegan and formulated with plant-based cleansers and softeners and without dyes, optical brighteners or parabens. Each of our scents is infused with an ethically sourced essential oil or absolute and the majority of our packaging is made from recycled plastic and is recyclable. Love Home and Planet is on a journey with a strong start but it’s still just the beginning. This journey is a holistic one, encompassing the entire product life cycle and beyond, this is why we will be proud to join the Loop pilot in the months to come.

Since 2000, REN Clean Skincare has continually harnessed the high performing ingredients that respect and protect the equilibrium of your skin and our planet. We are on a mission with an ambitious pledge to be ZERO WASTE by 2021*. Partnering with Loop™’s first wave is the latest step in our pledge of working towards a waste-free future. Six of our best-selling daily body care products and cleansers are now available in refillable bottles, reducing the amount of packaging in circulation.

• Rosa Centifolia Cleansing Gel
• Moroccan Rose Otto Body Wash
• Moroccan Rose Otto Body Lotion
• Atlantic Kelp and Magnesium Anti-fatigue Body Cream
• Atlantic Kelp and Magnesium Anti-fatigue Body Wash
• Atlantic Kelp and Magnesium Anti-fatigue Hand Wash

Each returned glass bottle will be cleaned, re-conditioned and refilled to maximize customer reuse. Plus, to tackle the current waste crisis we’ve taken action in 2018 and continue work alongside our global activist partner The Surfrider Foundation to clean up beaches, oceans and waterways worldwide.

*refer to renskincare.com for more information on our Zero Waste by 2021 pledge

Seventh Generation is a leading green brand of home care products in the United States. We know that plant-based products can provide the efficacy you are looking for, and that products designed from renewable plant-based ingredients reduce our dependence on petroleum. Our liquid dish soap, liquid hand soap, and liquid laundry detergent are all plant-based, USDA Certified Biobased Products. These formulas are biodegradable and they contain no dyes or synthetic fragrances. By offering re-fillable packaging in partnership with the Loop™ program, we continue to pursue the vision of a zero-waste future.

More than 100 years after Richard Hellmann opened his Deli in New York, we continue to use “Blue Ribbon Quality” ingredients to bring out the best in our mayonnaise, sauces, and dressings all with sustainability top of mind. We were the first to use 100% cage-free eggs, are committed to sustainably sourcing 100% of our oils, and are transitioning our packaging to 100% post-consumer recycled plastic. Hellmann’s Organic Mayonnaise is carefully crafted with only organic, non-GMO sourced ingredients, free-range eggs, and is free from artificial preservatives, colors and flavors. In our partnership with Loop™, now you can enjoy the great taste and texture of Hellmann’s all while contributing to a more sustainable future.