In her work, Ziveri has ensured that sustainability is well-spread across the entire company organisation — top-down and bottom-up — according to the Italian beauty company’s ethical chart, which highlights its value-driven business model. The actual sustainability work focuses on three main areas; environmental, social, and governance (ESG).
— While environmental sustainability is the one guiding us, we’re not forgetting the social aspect — diversity and inclusion, future generations at work, and having a local community impact, she says. Through governance, we want to make sure that we’re transparent, have responsible marketing, and that the entire organisation can understand the importance of being a stakeholder-driven company.
Within the environmental area, Ziveri continues, the company works with four main topics: decarbonisation, circularity, biodiversity, and water.
— We now focus on decarbonisation. In 2006, we started to take care of reducing our carbon footprint. We switched from fossil fuels to renewably sourced electricity and have lowered our CO2 emissions by reducing the use of material in our packaging, focusing on formulas that are more and more rich in natural ingredients from organic sources. And, a few years ago, we founded European Regenerative Organic Centre (EROC), together with Rodale Institute, right in front of our head office in Parma.
— The four main topics I mentioned are also strictly connected. When we talk about sustainability, we have to manage a complex structure where circularity reduces CO2 emissions, the reduction of emissions announces the protection of biodiversity, and the good use of water is consistent. If you have good management of the soil, you’ll have a reduction of water. Everything is connected, and we try to work systemically.
How?
— Again, it’s not an isolated approach regarding certain topics and projects but considering the impact ’360 degrees.’ We are a certified B Corp. The assessment is related to any kind of impact that the company produces — environmental, social, and governance. Through the assessment of the certification, we can also verify that we are making a positive impact at several levels.
In the environmental part of the sustainability work, Davines Group conducts life cycle assessments, measuring several parameters of impact, including CO2 emissions, of the products.
— Becoming net zero by 2050 is one of our main goals. This can only be achieved through a serious commitment to reducing CO2 emissions, in line with the reduction target that we have agreed on together with SBTI (Science Based Targets initiative). So, we are now implementing several projects focused on reducing our CO2 emissions, at 360 degrees, meaning direct and indirect emissions in Scope 1, 2, and 3. Based on the magnitude of our CO2 emissions, we have identified projects in the Scope 3 area to guarantee the decarbonisation process to achieve 2030 medium-term in line with the SBTI commitment.
— We’re now in the evaluation phase (of the projects) and very soon, we will communicate our commitment to 2030. What I can say is that, to us, decoupling is a priority; we aim to further reduce our impact, while our company grows.
Davines Group’s chairman Davide Bollati is also the co-founder of the Regenerative Society Foundation.
— It started with several companies, mainly from the B Corp movement, with a regenerative perspective, including coffee producer illy, Chiesi, a pharmaceutical company, and Sammontana’s ice cream. The idea is to work through the definition of a regenerative model that can be implemented and works throughout all the elements that are necessary to have a regenerative result. These include decarbonisation, soil restoration and conservation, and conservation of natural capital but also circularity of the whole value chain. The RSF benefits not only from the collaborative approach between these companies but it is also supported by influential actors such as the Fondazione per lo sviluppo sostenibile, Nativa and the academic world, including professors of the calibre of Jeffrey Sachs.
More concretely, what do you do together?
— Participation in activities from a solid scientific basis and a continuous exchange of inspiration and best practices among the companies.
As mentioned, Davines Group, in partnership with the Rodale Institute founded EROC (European Regenerative Organic Center) three years ago. It’s a research and training hub in a 17-hectare site in front of the head office in Parma, welcoming students, influencers, brand owners, and the industry to study regenerative practices.
— This project is very important since it can drive a consistent change in the way of doing business, Ziveri shares. It can also serve as an example for other organisations and as guidance for farmers. Apart from research, there is also a focus on training and educating farmers and supporting them throughout the ROC (Regenerative Organic Certified) process created by the Regenerative Organic Alliance.
— We still have to work in order to make sure that EROC is a point of reference not only in the cosmetic industry but also in other sectors, such as our partnership on an EROC project with food company Barilla. People and organisations do not yet understand the impact and importance of regenerative organic agriculture, on the environment and the social aspect, giving the chance to farmers to not use chemicals and have a better return on investment.
How many regenerative ingredients have you been able to source from EROC and your partnering farmers yet? And what’s the reason why not more brands are using it?
— To date, we have 6 ingredients from regenerative organic agriculture in our brands’ products’ formulas — and we have validated 8 other ingredients. Our future goal is to further increase this number of ingredients in our formulas.
— I think there are several reasons. Chemicals in agriculture are widely diffused and we forgot traditional, regenerative agriculture, which, in the past, was widely used. In the last century, we almost forgot the way of producing through a healthy approach to the soil. I think we need a transition in agriculture and also in the way that companies can see this approach as an opportunity. In general, people are driven to think that with chemicals you do things faster and with higher productivity and results. But in the long term, you are destroying the soil, making everything more poor, and less regenerative. So, in the long term, that is not a high return on investment — we are using rather than regenerating resources that should last forever.
Can you also make money by working with regenerative practices instead of using chemicals?
— I think that in the end, yes, but I can not answer that yet. We have to prove it. In a few years, once more farmers have shifted (to regenerative practices), we may have proof. Today, we don’t — at least not for EROC.
At EROC, Davines Group is also working on an innovative project on agrivoltaics — the practice of growing crops underneath solar panels — exploring the potential of dual use of land for solar energy production and agriculture.
— The idea is to partially self-produce the electricity that we need for our plant in EROC, with a combination of cultivation to test the impact of the solar panel on agriculture. We want to see how it could be integrated not only for the production of electricity but explore the beneficial impact that agrivoltaics could have on soil preservation. For instance, the shadowing could be important for specific cultivation which could be affected by the change of temperature globally due to climate change. Agrivoltaics could create better hydration of the soil without using so much water.
You’ve been with the brand for 27 years and started focusing solely on sustainability in 2017. What are your takeaways?
— That sustainability is always a starting point, never a point of arrival. Companies should always have a humble approach, always commit to what can be done to improve, celebrate good results, and be conscious of what is not good. And it’s a very true and basic rule that social sustainability and environmental sustainability are closely connected — you can not have environmental sustainability without social sustainability and vice versa.
What’s the most challenging part of your job?
— Sustainability is a complex system. We have to make sure that through our choices, we don’t find solutions which are causing other issues. We need to have a systemic vision and be able to navigate into complexity.
You’ve managed to reduce your amount of plastic, which is a good start, but what do you forecast will happen in beauty packaging?
— I’m quite critical of plastic. On the other side, I have to admit that if well managed, it’s a very good material. It preserves the formulas and the product quality very well and it’s light, which is lowering CO2 emissions. We develop our packaging in accordance with the principles of the circular economy. As stated in the Charter for Packaging Research, which states how it must be ’designed, manufactured and marketed in a way that permits its reuse or recovery, including recycling, and minimizes its impact on the environment in the event of disposal.’ In addition, plastic packaging allows for lighter designs, and thus a substantial reduction in the raw material used, and the resulting CO2eq emissions.
— Research for new packaging solutions is our core: furthermore, we’ve initiated a project with Plastic Bank to collect the same amount of plastic we input on the market. Through their social enterprise, we collect and remove the equivalent amount of plastic from sales of our products from coastal areas in Brazil, the Philippines, Indonesia, and Thailand.
— The technology also needs to improve. I’m not a super fan of biomaterials in terms of biodegradable ones. It’s a problem for us when using wet ingredients since we can not guarantee the long-term persistence of the formula in packaging that dissolves, and we should not use materials that are not in a full-circle loop. We will have to find new solutions — in the last few years, I’ve seen several very promising materials. We are trying to reduce the use of virgin plastic and support the right process of recycling post-consumer.
How?
— We develop and study our packaging following the principles of the circular model. as defined in the mentioned Charter for Packaging Research, which was drafted in 2011 as a support to the companies in designing more sustainable packaging. We are also committed, through dedicated awareness and educational activities with our clients, to sensitise them on their fundamental role in ensuring a new circular economic model.
Which are these promising packaging materials that you mentioned?
— Each material has strengths and weaknesses when used in packaging. Therefore, for each formulation, what is considered the best packaging material, with the least environmental impact, is chosen. To date, the Davines Group has used five different materials for its packaging: paper and cardboard, plastic, glass, aluminium, and steel. I dream of any kind of packaging from recycling and upcycling of waste material.
We will now and soon see new EU regulations implemented, also for beauty. What’s your view on these, and how do you work to follow them?
— We need to have support from governments to push the green transition. Many technological and structural changes are possible only with political decisions and legislation choices. We need to guarantee a common language. On the other side, we have to make sure to avoid homologation.
If we meet to talk sustainability two years from now, what will we talk about?
— We will not be so far from where we are now, unfortunately, though I hope for new solutions in packaging, Ziveri shares, continuing,
— I think and hope to see an even higher level of awareness among consumers. We want to advocate more and more with other companies. Davines is part of the B Beauty Coalition (gathering and since February, I’ve been part of its supervisory board. I dream of a coalition where we may have a massive shift from certain practices in, for instance, ingredients and packaging, and see a regenerative approach among the brands.
— Right now, we have 85 members — also from Scandinavia in Skandinavisk and Rudolph Care — and are trying to work together to create a common language. We want to find out what is impactful and not, to drive visibility to the companies and drive change in consumer behaviour and choices. Likeminded people and organisations are essential to drive everyday choices to a better tomorrow.
