GSK Consumer Healthcare (GSKCH) has launched its first carbon neutral Dr.BEST GreenClean toothbrush, raising sustainability standards in the oral care category.
Other popular brands of GSKCH, which is due to separate into a new company next year, include Sensodyne, parodontax, Voltaren and Advil.
With the new product, the company is striving to reduce the use of fossil fuels for virgin plastic.
The Dr.BEST GreenClean toothbrush handle is made from wood-based bioplastic that is derived from pine, spruce and birch trees in sustainable forests. It is a byproduct of paper production, and would otherwise be disposed of.
Its bristles are made of renewable castor oil, and its plastic free packaging includes GSKCH’s innovative cellulose window, which can easily be disposed of.
Besides, the firm has aligned with ClimatePartner, Europe’s leading solution provider for corporate climate action, to analyse and minimise the carbon impact of the product and its manufacturing.
The effort has reduced carbon footprint of the brush by over 50 per cent compared to the standard Dr.BEST toothbrush, and the remaining is offset through a community based ClimatePartner project in Madagascar.
Further, the company plans to apply this new technology across other toothbrushes in its portfolio - including its market leading Sensodyne brand.
A recent Nielsen study highlighted growing consumer preference for sustainable products noting that “73 per cent of consumers say they would definitely change their consumption habits to reduce their environmental impact.”
Gareth Rudduck, Oral Care sustainability lead, GSK Consumer Healthcare said: “We’re now collaborating with retailers and dental healthcare professionals to drive the growth of more sustainable options in oral care products across the world.
“Whilst this product achieves carbon neutral status by offsetting, we are working to develop future solutions that do not require offsetting. It’s just one part of our ongoing sustainability journey, in which we’re working to address the environmental and societal barriers to everyday health.”
GSKCH is on a mission to reduce the carbon it generates in line with the GSK’s commitment to achieve a net zero impact on climate by 2030, announced by CEO Emma Walmsley in November 2020.
Sukhi Basra
