Chemicals and materials science giant Dow Inc. announced today the launch of a new collaboration with LVMH Beauty, aimed at accelerating the use of sustainable packaging across LVMH’s perfume and cosmetics product brands, with plans to begin utilizing bio-based and circular plastics on key brands this year.

A division of leading luxury company LVMH, LVMH Beauty’s perfumes & cosmetics brands include Parfums Christian Dior, Parfums Givenchy, Guerlain, Benefit Cosmetics and STELLA by Stella McCartney. LVMH Group’s sustainability commitments include eliminating fossil-based virgin plastic in packaging by 2026, with an interim 2023 goal to strengthen sustainable materials efforts.

Under the new initiative, the companies will work to integrate bio-based and circular plastics for applications including premium perfume caps and cosmetic cream jars. The plastics will be produced using Dow’s sustainable SURLYN Ionomers. The bio-based polymers will use feedstock materials that only include waste residues or by-products from an alternative production process, while the circular SURLYN will utilize hard-to-recycle mixed plastic waste transformed through advanced recycling technologies.

The sustainable packaging initiative will begin with perfume brand GUERLAIN La Petite Robe Noire.

Claude Martinez, Executive President and Managing Director of LVMH Beauty, said:

“At LVMH, with our Life 360 program, we made the decision that our packaging will contain zero plastic from virgin fossil resources in a near future. Collaborating with Dow in developing sustainable SURLYN™ is key as this material is used in some of our iconic perfumes, starting with GUERLAIN La Petite Robe Noire. It is helping LVMH achieve our sustainability targets without any compromise on quality.”

The new collaboration follows the launch by Dow in October of a new business platform, Circular & Renewable Solutions, aligned with the company’s Packaging & Specialty Plastics operating segment, along with a target to commercialize 3 million metric tons of circular and renewable solutions annually by 2030.

Karen S. Carter, President of Packaging & Specialty Plastics, Dow, said:

“Creating a circular economy takes every player in the value chain to commit to ambitious goals and challenge the status quo. Dow looks forward to supporting the sustainability journey of a leading global luxury brand.”