Environmental Harm

What is so damaging about non-environmentally sound washing and cleaning products?

A typical conventional product is based on petrochemicals, which are rapidly depleting sources of non-renewable materials. Residues from these are poorly biodegradable and build up in the environment where they cause significant, long lasting damage to humans, animals and the environment.

How can Ecover prove that its products are less harmful to the environment?

The Ecover laboratory selects its raw materials on the basis of their plant or mineral sourcing, the highest possible biodegradability and minimum toxicity to the water environment. Detergents are always a burden on the environment in one way or another but Ecover strives to keep this burden as low as possible and succeeds in doing so significantly better than other producers. To this purpose, the Ecover lab has state-of-the-art equipment.

How does Ecover encourage its suppliers to adopt its environmental policy?

Ecover has a Stakeholder Management System, from which a Supplier Screening Scheme has been extracted. All major suppliers are subjected to this policy. On top of this all suppliers receive the Ecover Environmental Policy Declaration and are asked to act in accordance with it.

How does Ecover stimulate its employees to act more environmentally responsible?

Strict rules of conduct are established at environmental level and must be complied with during work. There are also less formal incentives which encourage environmentally aware behaviour, for example workers are offered financial incentives to cycle to work.

Do environmentally safe products clean as well as ordinary products?

Test results show that Ecover detergent removes stains just as efficiently as the market leader’s detergent. Our detergent for woollens and delicates is even gentler on your washing and ensures a better colour protection than the market leader’s product. It is true that with the first generation of ecological cleaning products, often more attention was given to their ecological performance than to their cleaning properties. Oftentimes they were not very efficient. And although today this is entirely untrue, many people still seem to be prejudiced. Over the last 20 years, the Ecover laboratory has gained an enormous amount of knowledge. Countless combinations and tests of ecological ingredients have now resulted in ecological formulas, which render the use of common, harmful ingredients superfluous and equal the washing power of the market leader’s products.

Why are Ecover products more environmentally friendly?

“Environmentally friendly“ detergents do not exist. Detergents are always a burden on the environment in one way or another. Ecover strives to keep this burden as low as possible and succeeds in doing so significantly better than other producers of detergents and cleaning products. This is because Ecover already subjects its raw materials to strict selection criteria during product development. Such selection is aimed at minimising the noxiousness of the products for water life and guaranteeing rapid and complete biological degradability. Ecover primarily uses plant raw materials and commonly occurring minerals. Petrochemical raw materials are as good as completely excluded as they are mostly poorly degradable and often poisonous for water life. Furthermore, stocks of these are almost exhausted.

On which grounds does Ecover claim to have the best biodegradable washing powder?

We are constantly researching the composition of common washing powders. Therefore we have learnt that these products contain many raw materials that are badly or not at all biodegradable under normal, natural circumstances. Ecover only uses raw materials with full, undisputed biodegradability. By applying strict selection criteria for raw materials, Ecover ensures the highest possible quality for the environment. And biodegradability is only one of the criteria we use to guarantee that our products are of the highest possible standard. Toxicity to the water environment and optimum health safety also play an important role in our criteria for environmental safety. And, of course, cleaning power should be optimal.

What kind of initiatives has Ecover taken to stimulate industry to improve environmental soundness?

Through its 20 years of existence
Ecover has already taken a lot of initiatives, like: Environmental Detergent Manufacturers Association (EDMA)Ecover is a founding member of this professional association of detergent producers. The aim of this organisation is to carry out research on and to promote and spread ecological detergents and cleaning products.

PalmPool
Ecover is a committee member of this international organisation which promotes the use of renewable raw materials.

The King Baudouin Foundation’s Circle for Sustainable Enterprise
Ecover is a member of this circle whose goal is to stimulate the introduction of sustainable enterprise in industry. The foundation is an initiative by the King Baudouin Foundation and is partly subsidised by the Belgian royal family.

European Eco-label Advisory Committee
Ecover is a member of the Advisory Committee for the European Eco-label.The goal of the European Eco-label is to promote less ecologically harmful products. Social Venture Network (SVN)Ecover is a member of the SVN. This is a global organisation which fosters socially responsible enterprise.

Frame
Ecover sponsors Frame. This is an organisation which does whatever it can to reduce the number of tests on animals with the ultimate goal of banning animal tests completely.

Release of detergent formula in 2002
2002 saw the launch of a campaign where Ecover released the formula of its detergent so that its fellow producers would be encouraged to copy it to improve their impact on the environment.

Programme to improve water quality
Ecover has participated in a programme to improve water quality in cooperation with the WWF in Belgium and the Flemish Community.

Soil AssociationIn the UK
Ecover works closely with the ‘Soil Association’ (a UK association which promotes organic farming) to provide contributions to reducing the environmental impact of agriculture.

Symposia etc.
Within the framework of transfer of know-how, Ecover regularly speaks at symposia for corporate players such as the VEV, company groups and universities. In addition, it publishes regularly in all types of media such as Green Futures. Ecover is also involved in TV.