L’Oréal has announced the second cohort of 13 companies from eight countries that will take part in the cosmetics group’s accelerator programme for sustainable innovation. The L’AcceleratOR programme, which has a budget of 100 million euros, aims to identify, test and scale up future-oriented solutions to address industry challenges in the areas of climate, nature conservation and the circular economy. Following the first cohort of start-ups and young companies, the second round is characterised by an expanded scope, the group reports. Furthermore, the spectrum of sustainability challenges now also includes water technologies.

Access to L’Oréal’s resources

According to L’Oréal, the 13 selected candidates will undergo an acceleration phase led by the innovation team at the Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership (CISL). They will gain access to L’Oréal’s resources to launch six- to nine-month pilot projects and scale up their solutions across the group’s international business operations. “We are working to break new ground in the beauty industry through these solutions,” said Chief Corporate Responsibility Officer Ezgi Barcenas.

From fermentation to recycling

The 13 new pioneer teams include, amongst others, the German company Bioweg, which uses precision fermentation to produce new raw materials; the British start-up Arda Biomaterials, which is developing a plant-based leather alternative; the Italian glass manufacturer Bormioli Luigi, with its ultra-lightweight, durable glass packaging; and the US company Newlight Technologies, which converts methane into packaging materials. The Indian company Without is developing recycling technology for hard-to-recycle plastic packaging, whilst Nexus Power from Pune is developing batteries based on agricultural waste. Waterplan from the US uses an AI platform to develop local measures to tackle issues relating to water and biodiversity. “We are delighted to welcome the second cohort to the L’AcceleratOR programme following months of careful selection of commercially viable solutions,” said James Cole, Chief Innovation Officer at CISL. At the same time, the documentary series “Entering L’AcceleratOR” was launched on L’Oréal’s YouTube channel, following three teams from the first cohort on their journey.