Russia: The L’Oréal Plant Committed To Sustainable Development

With the expansion of its plant in Russia, L’Oréal has put in place measures to improve its environmental performance, particularly with respect to sustainable water management.

L’Oréal built its plant in Russia in 2010, in the Vorsino industrial park in the Kaluga region, located 85 km south of Moscow. Tasked with manufacturing hair care products (shampoos, hair conditioners) and hair-dyes for the L’Oréal Paris and Garnier brands, this plant was initially 10 000 m². In 2015, the Group decided to expand the plant, creating 13,700 m² of additional space. The expansion has also enabled L’Oréal to implement measures to improve the environmental performance of the plant.

Specific performance on sustainable water management

This expansion has allowed L’Oréal to double its plant’s production capacity, while installing state-of-the-art water treatment technology, which has given the plant the ability to treat and recycle 70 percent of wastewater on-site.

By implementing various measures, the Vorsino plant managed to reduce its water consumption per finished product by 77% (versus 2011).

Solar panels & zero waste to landfill

In addition, L’Oréal has installed solar panels that generate 10% of the energy consumed by the Vorsino plant on average, per year. The factory also attained the “zero waste to landfill” milestone.

This ambitious sustainability performance has been externally recognized; in August 2017, L’Oréal’s Vorsino plant received the prestigious “Eco-Corporation of the Year of Ecology” award.