Weleda, a world-leading cosmetics and pharmaceuticals brand, has been a UEBT member since 2011. The company was founded in 1921 and depends on more than 1,000 natural ingredients for its medicines and cosmetics products. UEBT works with Weleda on the company’s Ethical Sourcing System that provides a roadmap for Weleda’s practices from the point of collection or harvest of raw materials all the way to the product on a store shelf so that the consumer knows that Weleda sources natural ingredients with respect for people and biodiversity.

Sesame seeds being harvested in Mexico, photo courtesy of Weleda

Ethical Sourcing System certification by UEBT allows companies to set their own goals while meeting internationally recognized good practices. Companies collect producer and farmer information, assess challenges, and prioritize ingredients where they need to make improvements. This means that, when sourcing raw materials, Weleda ensures that biodiversity is conserved and used sustainably, and that all partners along the chain are treated equitably and paid fairly.

UEBT has evaluated the changes perceived by Weleda and its suppliers from adopting the UEBT standard. In Mexico for example, Weleda worked with their sesame oil supplier to develop social and biodiversity improvement projects, leading to increased biodiversity awareness and improved working conditions. Weleda expanded its sustainable sourcing work over the last several years, integrated additional biodiversity and social aspects into its systems, and prioritized more than 60 ingredient supply chains for development of improvement plans. For Weleda’s long-term contributions to ethical sourcing, they have been given several sustainability awards. Read a case study on Weleda.

Weleda

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