Providing high-quality active ingredients

With its expertise in lipochemistry, plant extraction and molecular distillation, Laboratoires Expanscience is a renowned provider for cosmetic and perfume manufacturers in France and at international level. Innovative, high-quality, plant-based active substances for cosmetics constitute a range of some 15 effective and natural product references.

The development of each active principle is based on:

• Rigorous scientific work
• Additional testing to show its effectiveness, stability and safety

Guaranteeing the safety and effectiveness of products

Since Laboratoires Expanscience products are intended for use by sensitive populations (including infants, adolescents, pregnant women and those with delicate skin), they are subject to particularly rigorous safety requirements involving:

• Stability testing
• Evaluations of tolerance, hypoallergenicity and phototoxicity limits
• Validation of the harmlessness of raw materials and products, depending on their target (performed by an independent toxicology expert)
• In-vitro and in-vivo effectiveness tests for the dermocosmetic lines

Controlling product quality, from development to manufacturing

Teams dedicated to quality at both the R&D centre and manufacturing site (CQ, AQ) ensure the products’ compliance with regulations and with Expanscience’s own requirements at all stages of their production.
→ Examples include :

• The selection of new ingredients, subject to validation by a committee comprising internal and external experts
• Inspections performed on each product lot, to ensure compliance with best practices and involving major sampling and analytic and bacteriological measurement schemes

Using more environmentally-friendly extraction procedures

Traditionally recognised for technological procedures that are particularly respectful of molecular integrity for the isolation of certain plant substances and lipids in particular, Laboratoires Expanscience is one of the only facilities to master molecular distillation under extreme vacuum conditions, an extraction method that has a lower impact on the environment than other procedures. This makes it possible to produce avocado and soybean unsaponifiable matter (ASU), of which Laboratoires Expanscience is the leading global producer.

Coordinating responsible ingredient-procurement networks

Developing active substances of natural origin for a medication or dermocosmetic product requires the use of plants like avocado, lupin and maca as raw materials. These plants often originate in Africa and Latin America. With its responsibility to such areas’ local communities in mind, Laboratoires Expanscience gives priority to:

• Respect for biodiversity
• Prohibition of biopiracy
• Fair trade

→ Example:
In Africa, the development of an active substance from grains harvested in the bush was accompanied by financial support for a women’s consortium of harvesters and a contribution to the preservation of natural sites.

Selecting raw materials that comply with a prerequisite of harmlessness

The selection of any new substance likely to be used as a raw material must be performed in accordance with a set of strict specifications including:

• Traceability regarding origin
• Production conditions
• Stability
• Physicochemical and toxicological properties

→ Expanscience goes even further, with: :

• The complete reformulation of the Mustela lines to eliminate questionable ingredients (phthalates, parabens, phenoxyethanol)
• The development of organic cosmetic substances (Ecocert label) and sesame and sunflower concentrates (Sésaline® Bio and Soline® Bio)

Responsible, transparent communications

Laboratoires Expanscience has signed the UDA Charter (advertisers’ union) for responsible communications, which involves, in particular:

• Adhering to advertising messages that stress responsibility
• Choosing media and signage that are more respectful to the environment
• Using customer data in a respectful, loyal manner

• Criteria to be upheld in taking a cautious approach to naturalness
• Conditions for the use of claims regarding naturalness

Reducing packaging and increasing its recyclability

Committed to sustainability, Laboratoires Expanscience implemented several packaging initiatives in 2009, including :

• Training in product eco-design for employees involved in product development
• Elimination or reduction of cases and instruction sheets for cosmetic products, which saved 11.2 tonnes of paper and cardboard
• Introduction of recyclable packaging for our Noviderm and Mustela ranges: 89.5 % of all bottles (98% of the volume produced) are now recyclable

Working to reduce carbon emissions

A Bilan Carbone® (carbon assessment)performed in 2009 allowed the company to define greenhouse-gas emission-reduction goals.
Eight priority action plans coordinated by project groups have been selected, covering :

• Transport of personnel and shipping of merchandise
• Packaging
• Energy consumption
  → Example:
  In 2009, carbon emissions were reduced to 134.8 g/km (compared with 143 g/km in 2007) for a fleet of long-term rental cars.

Integrating sustainable construction criteria

In 2009, a new production unit was built according to High Environmental Quality (HEQ) criteria.
Based in Epernon, this 3,800-sq.m building will go into service in October 2010. All told, €500,000 was invested in such environmentally-friendly solutions as:

• Reuse of rainwater
• Geothermal heating
• Process-energy recovery
• Green roofs

→ Goal:
To achieve water savings of nearly 50% and overall energy savings of 18% the production line.

Encouraging dialogue with stakeholders

In order to stay in touch with the needs of institutions, NGOs, professional organisations, associations and local communities, Laboratoires Expanscience formed a stakeholders’ panel in 2009.
This group of about 15 meets twice per year, for consultation regarding the company’s sustainability strategy.

Expanscience also welcomes a large number of its partners to the Epernon site. These contacts represent an excellent opportunity to increase awareness of sustainability goals in areas where they hold the most potential.

Promoting research and development regarding children’s products

The Mustela Foundation, operating under the aegis of the Fondation de France since its creation in 1982, supports healthcare professionals through various initiatives, including:

• Scholarships granted to over 70 researchers in support of research into psychology, paediatrics and paedopsychiatry
• Publication of preventive tools
• Organisation of a study trip
• Prizes for projects in the field for the positive treatment of children
• International partnership with the Sœur Emmanuelle organisation